About Antonie van Leeuwenhoek
Antonie Philips van Leeuwenhoek[note 1] (October 24, 1632 – August 26, 1723) was a Dutch tradesman and scientist. He is commonly known as "the Father of Microbiology", and considered to be the first microbiologist. He is best known for his work on the improvement of the microscope and for his contributions towards the establishment of microbiology.
Raised in Delft, Netherlands, Leeuwenhoek worked as a draper in his youth, and founded his own shop in 1654. He made a name for himself in municipal politics, and eventually developed an interest in lensmaking. Using his handcrafted microscopes, he was the first to observe and describe single-celled organisms, which he originally referred to as animalcules, and which are now referred to as microorganisms. He was also the first to record microscopic observations of muscle fibers, bacteria, spermatozoa, and blood flow in capillaries (small blood vessels). Leeuwenhoek did not author any books; his discoveries came to light through correspondence with the Royal Society, which published his letters.
Early life and career
Antonie van Leeuwenhoek was born in Delft, Holland, on October 24, 1632. Christened Thonis, he is believed to be of Dutch ancestry: his father, Philips Antonysz van Leeuwenhoek, was a basket maker who died when Antony was five years old. His mother, Margaretha (Bel van den Berch), came from a well-to-do brewer's family, and married Jacbon Jansz Molijn, a painter, after Philips' death. Antony had four older sisters, Margriete, Geertruyt, Neeltge, and Catharina. Little is known of his early life; he attended school near Leyden for a short time before being sent to live in Benthuizen with his uncle, an attorney and town clerk. He became an apprentice at a linen-draper's shop in Amsterdam at the age of 16.
He married Barbara de Mey in July 1654, with whom he would have one surviving daughter, Maria (four other children died in infancy). That year he returned to Delft, where he would live and study for the rest of his life. He opened a draper's shop, which he ran throughout the 1650s. Barbara died in 1666, and in 1671 Leeuwenhoek married Cornelia Swalmius, with whom he had no surviving children. His status in Delft grew throughout the following years, although he would remain an obscure figure outside of the city. He received a lucrative municipal title as chamberlain for the Delft sheriffs' assembly chamber in 1660, a position which he would hold for almost 40 years. In 1669 he was named a surveyor by the Court of Holland; later he would become a municipal "wine-gauger" in charge of the city's wine imports.
Leeuwenhoek was a contemporary of another famous Delft citizen, painter Johannes Vermeer, who was baptized just four days earlier. It has been suggested that he is the man portrayed in two of Vermeer's paintings of the late 1660s, The Astronomer and The Geographer. However, others argue that there appears to be little physical similarity. Because they were both relatively important men in a city with only 24,000 inhabitants, it is likely that they were at least acquaintances. Also, it is known that Leeuwenhoek acted as the executor of the will when the painter died in 1675.
Antonie Philips van Leeuwenhoek[note 1] (October 24, 1632 – August 26, 1723) was a Dutch tradesman and scientist. He is commonly known as "the Father of Microbiology", and considered to be the first microbiologist. He is best known for his work on the improvement of the microscope and for his contributions towards the establishment of microbiology.
Raised in Delft, Netherlands, Leeuwenhoek worked as a draper in his youth, and founded his own shop in 1654. He made a name for himself in municipal politics, and eventually developed an interest in lensmaking. Using his handcrafted microscopes, he was the first to observe and describe single-celled organisms, which he originally referred to as animalcules, and which are now referred to as microorganisms. He was also the first to record microscopic observations of muscle fibers, bacteria, spermatozoa, and blood flow in capillaries (small blood vessels). Leeuwenhoek did not author any books; his discoveries came to light through correspondence with the Royal Society, which published his letters.
Early life and career
Antonie van Leeuwenhoek was born in Delft, Holland, on October 24, 1632. Christened Thonis, he is believed to be of Dutch ancestry: his father, Philips Antonysz van Leeuwenhoek, was a basket maker who died when Antony was five years old. His mother, Margaretha (Bel van den Berch), came from a well-to-do brewer's family, and married Jacbon Jansz Molijn, a painter, after Philips' death. Antony had four older sisters, Margriete, Geertruyt, Neeltge, and Catharina. Little is known of his early life; he attended school near Leyden for a short time before being sent to live in Benthuizen with his uncle, an attorney and town clerk. He became an apprentice at a linen-draper's shop in Amsterdam at the age of 16.
He married Barbara de Mey in July 1654, with whom he would have one surviving daughter, Maria (four other children died in infancy). That year he returned to Delft, where he would live and study for the rest of his life. He opened a draper's shop, which he ran throughout the 1650s. Barbara died in 1666, and in 1671 Leeuwenhoek married Cornelia Swalmius, with whom he had no surviving children. His status in Delft grew throughout the following years, although he would remain an obscure figure outside of the city. He received a lucrative municipal title as chamberlain for the Delft sheriffs' assembly chamber in 1660, a position which he would hold for almost 40 years. In 1669 he was named a surveyor by the Court of Holland; later he would become a municipal "wine-gauger" in charge of the city's wine imports.
Leeuwenhoek was a contemporary of another famous Delft citizen, painter Johannes Vermeer, who was baptized just four days earlier. It has been suggested that he is the man portrayed in two of Vermeer's paintings of the late 1660s, The Astronomer and The Geographer. However, others argue that there appears to be little physical similarity. Because they were both relatively important men in a city with only 24,000 inhabitants, it is likely that they were at least acquaintances. Also, it is known that Leeuwenhoek acted as the executor of the will when the painter died in 1675.
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