The enlightened microscope: re-enactment and analysis of projections with eighteenth-century solar microscopes.

The article investigates the grounds for the interest of solar microscopes and their techniques. It provides a general introduction to the solar microscope. It also discusses the use of original instruments to gain access to the visual culture of solar microscopes and the issues raised by these re-enactments. It is said that the experiences involved in this process serve as a basis for reassessing the original source materials. From the said experiences, emerges a different account of the meaning of the solar microscope in the eighteenth century and possible reasons for its popularity.