History of Palynology History from "The 3-Volume Set"
Jansonius, J. and McGregor, D.C. 1996.
Introduction, Palynology: Principles and Applications. AASP Foundation. v. 1, pp 1-10. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE p.1-2. Spores and pollen are marvellous objects for study. Their morphology is infinitely varied, in a package so small that the wonder of their beauty never ceases to fascinate. This enchantment started as soon as the human eye was fortified by the magnifying property of the convex lens; without microscopes, there would be no palynology. According to Bradbury (1967, q.v. for references in this paragraph), the Englishman N. Grew in 1640 was the first to observe pollen grains under a microscope. J. Wilson, in 1702, constructed microscopes with a screw focus that, in an article in the Philosophical Transactions, were referred to as " small pocket-Microscopes, which with great ease are apply'd in viewing Opake, Transparent and liquid Objects; as the Farina of the Flowers of Plants, etc.; the Animals in Semine, etc. ". The screw device used by Wilson to bring objects into focus was invented by A. van Leeuwenhoek, who in the 1680s wrote a series of letters to the Royal Society on his "Animalcules" red blood corpuscles, protozoans, yeast cells, etc. [Dobell's (1960) fascinating translations accurately and engagingly reflect the earthy quality of the original Dutch]. However, van Leeuwenhoek's "glasses" were not true microscopes, but simple (i.e. not compound) convex lenses, with an extremely small working distance. By the early eighteenth century, microscopes with compound lenses were in use; E. Culpeper, for example, manufactured them, and in 1730 supplied samples of "The down of a Moth's wing. The dust of the Sun Flower. The dust of Mallows. The Eye of a Fly." to his customers. | |
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