Charles Darwin’s 200-Year-Old Microscope Set To Be Auctioned, Could Fetch $480,000

Designed by Charles Gould for the firm Cary around 1825, the instrument is one of the six surviving microscopes associated with Charles Darwin, according to auction house Christie's

Charles Darwin (Left) and a microscope placed near the window in his study so daylight could help illuminate the objects under scrutiny | Photo: Getty

New Delhi: A nearly 200-year-old microscope, which Charles Darwin, the father of evolution, gave his son Leonard two centuries ago, is set to go under the hammer at a London auction in December.

The microscope, which had remained with the Darwin family all these years, is expected to fetch up to $480,000, Reuters reported.

Designed by Charles Gould for the firm Cary around 1825, the instrument is one of the six surviving microscopes associated with the British naturalist, geologist and biologist, the report said, quoting auction house Christie's.

The microscope was manufactured when Darwin was said to be studying zoophytes — organisms such as coral and sea anemone.

The microscope is to be offered at Christie's Valuable Books & Manuscripts auction on December 15. The price estimate is 250,000 to 350,000 pounds ($343,050 - $480,270).

James Hyslop, Christie’s Head of Department, Scientific Instruments, Globes & Natural History, told Reuters: "It is just incredibly spine tingling to look through this and see the microscopic world that Darwin would have seen in the 1820s and 30s." 

According to him, a 1858 letter to his eldest son Leonard mentions the microscope he gave to him.

“It's wonderful to have that family connexion of Charles Darwin just before he becomes internationally famous," Hyslop was quoted as saying.

‘On the Origin of Species’, the groundbreaking work by Darwin, was published in 1859.

"Charles Darwin is one of the biggest names in the history of science, and collectors for Darwiniana (relating to Darwin) are truly international in breadth," Hyslop said.