The Telescope Maker Who Was Already Known
In 1725, a young Scottish craftsman named James Short began grinding lenses in Edinburgh, unknown to anyone beyond his small parish. He had no patron,...
This is stories & illustrations, drawing on John 1:43-51.
In 1725, a young Scottish craftsman named James Short began grinding lenses in Edinburgh, unknown to anyone beyond his small parish. He had no patron, no university post — just a quiet obsession with perfecting telescope mirrors in a rented room above a cobbler's shop. Then one afternoon, the renowned mathematician Colin Maclaurin walked into that cramped workshop, examined Short's mirrors, and said something that changed everything: "I have been watching your work for some time."…
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