Sheepshank's Telescope, First Erected on Mount Guajara, the Peak of Teneriffe in the Distance
1856
- Scottish Art
On his expedition to Teneriffe in 1856, Piazzi Smyth used a stereoscopic camera to register three-dimensional views and, by taking two pictures, to reduce the likelihood of accidental faults and tampering with the image. He had gone there to monitor observation conditions at great altitudes. This photograph shows the smaller of the two telescopes they carried up the mountain, established on a lower site. 'The two sailors are seated about amongst the packing boxes,' wrote Piazzi Smith, 'looking very tired'.
