The John Bargrave Collection
Christiaan Huygens (14 Apr 1629 - 8 Jul 1695)
Dutch mathematician, astronomer, physicist, and horologist who did pioneering work using the telescopic for scientific observation. In 1691 he presented to the Society "the celebrated object-glass of 122 feet focal length, made by Huygens, for an 'aerial telescope.' Hooke was entrusted with this glass, with the view of constructing an apparatus for its use, and in the mean time, Halley was ordered to 'view the scaffolding of St. Paul's Church, to seeif that might not conveniently serve for the present, to erect the object-glass thereon, for viewing such of the celestial objects as now present themselves'" (Weld I.330). "Two other object-glasses of Huygens' were afterwards presented to the Society, (one of 170 feet focal length), by Sir Isaac Newton, and the other (of 210 feet, with two eye-glasses, by Scarlet),
by the Rev. Gilbert Burnet, F.R.S. in 1724" (Weld I.330 n.4). Other biography: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christiaan_Huygens Roles: Authority - early modern
Relevant locations: Birth place in The Hague
Residence at London
People linked to person: Christiaan Huygens was a son of Constantijn Huygens (4 Sep 1596- 28 Mar 1687)
Christiaan Huygens was a donor to Royal Society (-)
Christiaan Huygens was a member of Royal Society (-)
Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1727) was a associate or acquaintance (general) of Christiaan Huygens