Herschel, William
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Speculum mirror made by William Herschel, (maker) — 1770-1820
A mirror like this sits at the bottom of William Herschel’s telescope. It is made of highly polished speculum, a mix of copper and tin. Herschel was obsessed with making perfect mirrors to accurately gather light from faraway objects. His ... read more
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Poster for a concert performance of Handel’s Messiah conducted by William Herschel, (association) — 1778
Before finding fame as an astronomer, William Herschel made a living as a musician. Caroline Herschel sang at this 1778 performance of Handel’s Messiah. She abandoned a soprano career to assist her brother in his astronomical research. read more
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Seven-foot telescope made by William Herschel, (maker) — c.1780
This is William Herschel’s own telescope. It may be the one he used in his back garden in the spring of 1781 to study what appeared to be a comet. Repeated observation revealed it was a new planet – the ... read more
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William Herschel’s ‘infrared’ prism, (user) — 1795-1805
This may be the prism used by William Herschel when he accidentally discovered invisible radiation in 1800. Using the prism, he split sunlight into its different colours and measured their temperatures. He noticed that the temperature was highest beyond the ... read more
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Salary letter from King George III to William and Caroline Herschel, (owner) — 1800
In 1800, William Herschel was paid £200 in annual salary as King’s Astronomer. His sister Caroline was paid £50 to act as his assistant, making her the first professional female astronomer. A note from Herschel’s wife Mary says that the ... read more