Magnifying lens with wooden container, Qianlong reign (1736-1795), Qing dynasty.

Magnifying lens with wooden container, Qianlong reign (1736-1795), Qing dynasty.

• Image Number: K1D000440N000000000PAB
• Dynasty: Qing dynasty
• Category: Miscellaneous objects
• Function: tool
• Material: Mineral/glass/transparent glass
• Description:
  Transparent glass round mirror, with slightly convex faces on both sides, embedded in a wooden frame, can be used to view objects with magnified effect. At the time of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, lenses with special magnifying effects have been recorded. The term “microscope” was used to refer to equipment that “can show things to the minimum, making them bright”. The wooden box where this round mirror was stored was engraved with a poem written by the Emperor Qianlong in his poem “Chanting the Microscope” in the third year of the reign of Emperor Qianlong (the 21st year of the reign of Emperor Qianlong, 1756): “Glass is a mirror, which can be seen from a distance. He Lai’s catching device is called a microscope. It can be seen from a small point to a large point, and nothing can be hidden from a small point. It is thin and fresh or can be left behind. I think of clear water as a metaphor, but I can’t use it.” Although the metaphor in the poem does not need to rely on external objects to gain insight into autumn hair, it is used to prepare a wooden box for this mirror, engrave imperial poems, and store them in brocade bags and brocade boxes, which shows the feeling of cherishing treasures.