Page 32 - pp-Suter-Miscellany
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The Solomons optical firm advertised in the
Ecclesiastical Gazette (an Anglican publication) in the
1860s.
From the Ecclesiastical Gazette, June 13, 1865
The firm enjoyed prestigious support, as evidenced
above. Sir William Herschel wrote guidelines for Her
Majesty’s ships dredging for biological material, and
“opticians to the government” probably implies sales of
compasses, barometers, telescopes and binoculars to
the armed forces. Mid-century, Sir David Brewster
also sat at the pinnacle of the English scientific
establishment; Herschel originally worked in England
as an influential church organist, hence was doubly
well regarded by microscopically inclined clergy.
The Solomons business was strategically placed. John
Murray, publisher of scientific works – including those
of Charles Darwin – was a few doors away. Nobility
and gentry from far and wide stayed at Brown’s Hotel,
where T.H. Huxley’s “X Club” met to discuss the latest
ideas in biology. Albermarle Street also housed the
