Below we will comment on some prominent Italian manufacturers.
Amici Giovanni Battista
He was a leading Italian scientist, optician, naturalist, and astronomer. In 1858 he described two types of microscopes: a portable pocket microscope with a screw focus that raised the stage (F) in the figure. The second microscope allows hands-free observations, as it uses reflected light on a drum-shaped base.
- Amici’s signature on his instruments. Portrait of G. B. Amici and schematic of one of his portable microscopes. Bottom row: diagram of his second portable device and a copy made by him. Finally, a copy of his portable horizontal microscope in Bologna.
Although he especially excelled in the field of astronomy, he built numerous scientific instruments. Among them more than three hundred microscopes and telescopes. Many of which are currently on display in the Galileo Museum in Florence.
Koristka Fratelli
It is an Italian company based in Milan and dedicated to optics. It was founded with this name in 1880. Francesco Koristka, of Polish origin, was previously trained in Vienna and established this company dedicated to mechanics and optics in Milan. It would become one of the few companies of this type of its time and possibly the most important. He exported part of his production to Europe and America. Thanks to his friendship with Ernst Abbe he used part of the patents that Zeiss had registered.
In 1929 the company was taken over by the Galileo Office which would produce microscopes until 1968. It built binoculars for the army like the Argo 8 × 30 model and also microscopes, like the one shown in the figure.
Rigamonti
It is an Italian company specialized in instruments for optics and fiber optic cables.
