Section of a nerve in an oak leaf
Date
26 March 1675
Creator
Unknown, Artist
Object type
Archive reference number
Manuscript page number
p5
Material
Dimensions
height (page): 203mm
width (page): 80mm
width (page): 80mm
Subject
Description
In a letter from Antoni van Leeuwenhoek to Henry Oldenburg
Van Leeuwenhoek explains in his letter how he has taken the middle nerve of an oak leaf (see the ink impression of the leaf in image EL/L1/13/009), and investigated a section of the nerve with his microscope.
Van Leeuwenhoek explains in his letter how he has taken the middle nerve of an oak leaf (see the ink impression of the leaf in image EL/L1/13/009), and investigated a section of the nerve with his microscope.
Object history
In the University Library of Leipzig (Nachlass 135), two leaves of drawings are kept, which fairly correspond with two out of the three leaves that go with this letter, representing the section of a vein of an oak-leaf and two oak-leaves. The Leipzig copy is approximately the reflection of the London drawing. The lettering is slightly different. Judging by the handwriting, the inscription is by Constantijn Huygens (senior). The drawing of the transverse section of a vein of an oak-leaf, kept in London and in Leipzig, as well as the figure of the leg of a louse are in pencil. The figures of oak-leaves are ink-impressions. (Alle de brieven van Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, ed. by a committee of Dutch scientists, 17 vols [ongoing] (Amsterdam: Swets & Zeitlinger, 1939- ), I, 276-95 (letter 17).)
Related fellows
Antoni van Leeuwenhoek (1632 - 1723, Dutch) , Naturalist
Henry Oldenburg (1612 - 1677, German) , Scientific correspondent
Henry Oldenburg (1612 - 1677, German) , Scientific correspondent
Associated place