Zacharias Janssen

Zacharias Janssen (1580-1638) (flourished c. late 16th century) was a Dutch spectacle-maker, son of Hans Janssen . He is claimed to have been the first to invent a compound microscope, probably with the help of his father in the year 1595, although the origin of the microscope is a matter of debate.

Credit for the first microscope is usually given to Zacharias Janssen in Middleburg, Holland, around the year 1595. Since Zacharias was very young at that time, it's possible that his father Hans made the first one, but young Zach took over the production. The first compound microscopes produced by the Janssen's was simply a tube with lenses at each end. The magnification of these early scopes ranged from 3X to 9X, depending on the size of the diaphragm openings.