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Microscope Museum Collection of antique microscopes and other
scientific instruments |
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Microscope 644 (Casartelli; folding linen
tester; early 20th century)
Guiseppe Luigi Casartelli (1823 – 1900) emigrated as a child from
Italy to Liverpool, England, joining a relative’s scientific instrument firm
business. He changed his name to Joseph Louis Casartelli and later moved to Manchester
where he established himself as a manufacturer of optical equipment, trading
at 43 Market Street for many years. Around 1850, Casartelli
produced microscopes, telescopes and other optical devices. By the 1870s-80s,
Casartelli’s business focussed on supplying the
heavy industries of Manchester, including fittings for steam engines, mining
equipment and optical instruments for the fabric industry. One of Casartelli’s sons, Joseph Henry, was made a partner of
the company and the business became “J. Casartelli
and Son” in 1896. Casartelli’s business moved to 18
Brown Street, Manchester in 1922, acquired the business of another family
member in Liverpool in 1929, but was liquidated during the Great Depression
in 1933. Parts of the business continued under different ownerships,
including the Liverpool business as ‘J. Casartelli
& Son (Liverpool)’ (later ‘Casartelli
Instruments Ltd.’, in 1984, which closed in 1989), and the original business
became ‘J. Casartelli & Son Ltd.’ (and then
‘John Casartelli (M/c) Ltd.’ in 1939). Microscope 644 is a folding linen
tester, or linen prover, engraved with ‘CASARTELLI, SALFORD 6’. The
instrument should be dated from the early 20th century and would
be used for counting threads in fabrics (the number of threads per unit of
length provides evidence of a higher quality of cloth). These instruments
fold flat for storing and transport and form a 'C' shape when in use. The
earliest forms have a simple standard opening on the base, but later versions
have this opening marked with calibrations of some kind. These types of linen
testers have been made and sold by many companies since at least the early
19th century and were rarely signed by their makers or retailers (Figure 1). Note: this instrument was kindly donated by David Searle (Shoreham by
Sea, England) in August 2026.
Figure 1. Folding linen testers engraved in the
catalogues of several companies: (A) Palmer (1840); (B) Negretti
and Zambra (1859); (C, D) William McAllister
(1867); (E, F) Negretti and Zambra
(1870s e 1885); (G) James Queen (1870 and 1872); (H) Ernest Goldbacher
(1879); (I) B. Kahn & Son (c. 1890); (J) Bausch and Lomb (1892); (K)
Arthur Thomas (1914); (L) Bausch and Lomb (1914); (M) A. Clarkson & Co
(1920s); (N) Emille Deyrolle (1931); and (O, P, Q) Gallenkamp (c. 1939) |
