The Leeuwenhoekiana of Clifford Dobell

Abstract

Clifford Dobell, whose birth was a century ago this year, became a leading protozoologist. His two books on the subject (1, 2) are detailed and thorough and are characterized by carefully executed diagrams and drawings of organisms, which he made himself with Indian ink and water colour and which stand as classical examples of microbiological artwork. In terms of diagnostic authority and taxonomic insight, his publications are exemplary milestones in the study of the protozoa that infect the intestinal tract of mankind. Yet the volume with which Dobell’s name is inextricably linked lies not in the realm of laboratory science but is one of the classical biographies in the history of biology. I refer to his work on Antony van Leeuwenhoek (3) in which details of this remarkable Dutchman were recounted at length. When Dobell’s own biographers looked back on his life-time of work (4-16) it was on this masterly volume that their eulogies often centred. The book is detailed and was drawn with loving care from a lengthy study of Leeuwenhoek’s writings, his life and his work.