Accession No
3806
Brief Description
trade card of John Yarwell, 1683, with manuscript notes by Isaac Newton on the back, English, c. 1715
Origin
England; London
Maker
Yarwell, John Newton, Isaac
Class
optical; ephemera; prints
Earliest Date
1683
Latest Date
1683
Inscription Date
1683
Material
paper
Dimensions
height 210mm; breadth 326mm (document); height 333mm; breadth 442mm (with mount)
Special Collection
Provenance
Donated by Robert S. Whipple Purchased by Whipple from Court.TH, 07-04-1937. Bought from a sale of Sir Isaac Newton’s papers by T.H. Court. The sale was held by Sotheby’s on July 14th 1936, the following was taken from the sale catalogue: “Newton. Miscellanrous Notes, about 450 words, written on the back of an engraved advertisement sheet of optical instruments (soiled and slightly defective)”
Inscription
‘Made and Sold by IOHN YARWELL at ye Archimedes and Spectakles in St. Pauls Church yard, LONDON 1683.’
‘All the above named Instruments as Telescopes of all lengths, Microscopes single and double, Perspectives great and small Reading Glasses of all Sizes, Magnifying Glasses, Multiplying Glasses, Triangular Prisms, Speaking Trumpetts, Spectacles fitted to all ages, And all other sorts of Glasses, both Concave and Convex.’
Description Notes
Trade card of John Yarwell, English, 1683; with manuscript notes by Isaac Newton on the back, c. 1715.
Obverse is a trade card for the instrument maker John Yarwell illustrating the instruments which he made (principally telescopes and microscopes).
Reverse carries notes by Newton in a late hand (c. 1715) on the subject of chronology, excerpts in Greek, English and Latin (mainly the latter). The extracts chosen by Newton are chiefly taken from the Fables of Gaius Julius Hyginus. A translation of the notes are in the object history file.
Complete.
References
Events
Description
This advertisement for the English optician John Yarwell dates from 1683. It shows a seated figure, thought to be copied from an illustration of the astronomer Johannes Hevelius, who is using a reverse-taper 6-drawer Yarwell telescope. Alongside are other telescopes, spectacles, reading glasses, a prism and simple and compound microscopes - all said to be ‘Made and Sold by IOHN YARWELL at ye Archimedes and Spectackles in St. Pauls Church yard’.
The interest attached to this trade card is greatly enhanced by the fact that it was owned by Sir Isaac Newton and the reverse is covered with notes in Newton’s hand. Written in Greek, English and Latin, the notes are on the subject of chronology.
30/08/2006
Created by: updated by Ruth Horry on 30/08/2006
FM:40314
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