Accession No
6093
Brief Description
pocket polarimeter, by Carl Zeiss, German, mid-20th Century
Origin
Germany; Jena
Maker
Carl Zeiss
Class
optical
Earliest Date
1920
Latest Date
1960
Inscription Date
Material
metal (chrome plate); glass
Dimensions
height 250mm; width 100mm; depth 170mm
Special Collection
Provenance
Donated on or before 23/03/2006. The donor’s father was employed by Hilger and Watts.
Inscription
‘Carl Zeiss
Jena’ [logo on body tube]
‘Nr.1708’ [underneath logo]
Description Notes
Pocket polarimeter by Carl Zeiss, Jena; German; mid-20th century.
Chrome body and stand. Top half of body tube is removable (push fit), presumably to place specimen inside. Swivel mirror on base of body tube. Degree circle rotated by knurled chrome knob. Vernier scale, marked 20 - 0 - 20 with reading lens.
Condition good.
References
Events
Description
Advertisements by Carl Zeiss show that similar polarimeters to this one were used by doctors to determine the amount of sugar present in a patient’s urine. The presence of sugar was an indication of diabetes, and the advertisement mentions that a person with diabetes might themselves want to own a polarimeter to check their own urine.
Some substances, such as sugar, have the property of bending light that is passed through them. These substances are said to be ‘optically-active’ and this property can be measured using polarimeter, which records the angle through which the light is bent. The size of the angle is a measure of how much optically-active substance (ie. sugar) is present in the solution.
06/09/2006
Created by: Ruth Horry on 06/09/2006
FM:46563
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