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Alexanders telescope / spyglass

Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2017 11:20 pm
by Coffeecup
Hi guys I'm looking for any info on whether Alexandee used a telescope / spyglass to look across the lands on his travels. Not sure if he did but it would make sense. Was hoping for any information regarding this. Thanks in advace.

Re: Alexanders telescope / spyglass

Posted: Tue Sep 12, 2017 12:25 pm
by rocktupac
I've never heard of Alexander having anything like that.

Re: Alexanders telescope / spyglass

Posted: Tue Sep 12, 2017 4:53 pm
by derek
I came across this picture one time. Its title was "Babylonian with a Single Lens Telescope". So things like that did exist.
telescope.png
telescope.png (161.5 KiB) Viewed 3479 times
Derek

Re: Alexanders telescope / spyglass

Posted: Tue Sep 12, 2017 11:20 pm
by rocktupac
Very simple single lenses did exist, and a few of them have been found. Aristophanes and Pliny the Elder both talk about lenses. However, they are hardly anything like a telescope. I think the Nimrud lens was something like 3x magnification, so hardly anything that one would use to look into the distance.

Re: Alexanders telescope / spyglass

Posted: Wed Sep 13, 2017 6:09 am
by Jeanne Reames
This sounds like something out of the Alexander Romance.

Alexander did not have a telescope of any kind. Aristotle did have some magnifying glasses, but that's about it.

Re: Alexanders telescope / spyglass

Posted: Fri Oct 06, 2017 2:45 pm
by m.jr
Ancient mesopotamians were famous for studying the stars, weren't they? I think it's quite possible (if not certain) they used some kind of lenses or arcaic telescope of some sort. Considering the persians were successors of the early mesopotamians, it's not impossible Alexander had access to some of their lenses.

Re: Alexanders telescope / spyglass

Posted: Sun Oct 22, 2017 6:09 am
by Jeanne Reames
We have the Chaldean Astronomical Diaries, but they were using fairly simple tools to map the movements of planets (and stars). Ephimerides (where the planets were located on any given day) was their chief interest. They did not need even primitive telescopes; they were using much simpler instruments, which we've found. Aristotle had small magnifying classes, but not for the stars.

The Spyscope is, indeed, from the Alexander Romance. :-)