Books on Scientific Instruments

The most important weapon in the armory of the collector  is a good book on the subject. Thankfully there are many available to the collector of scientific instruments. When starting out on a collection it is always a good idea to start out with an overview of what is available and realistic within your budget to collect. Collections can be limited by date of manufacture, by country of origin, by type, or even by maker. For general scientific instruments a good starting point would be Anthony Turner’s “Early Scientific Instruments; Europe 1400-1800” published by Sotheby’s in 1987. Following on from that, also published by Sotheby’s is Gerard L’E Turner’s “Nineteenth Century Scientific Instruments”. For the medical instrument collector nothing is better than Elisabeth Bennion’s, now out of print,  “Antique Medical Instruments.” Then there are more niche publications, some of which are listed below:

·      Slide Rules Their History, Models and Makers: Peter Hopp, Astragal Press

·      Directory of British Scientific Instrument Makers 1550-1851: Gloria Clifton, Zwemmer

·      Weighing Coins: Michael Crawforth, Cape Horn Press

·      The Great Age of the Microscope: G l’E Turner, Adam Hilger

·      Ivory Diptych Dials: Steven Lloyd, Harvard University Press

·      Globes from the Western World: Dekker and van der Krogt, Zwemmer