Began series of experiments to observe little animals in spice infusions
Date:
April 24, 1676
Began series of infusions of pepper and other spices in which, over the following five months, he observed microbes. His letter of October 9 chronicled 145 separate observations, ending on September 19. The Lens on Leeuwenhoek page about that letter (see left sidebar) has a chronology of the observations.
This first observation, Pepper 1, involved 3 oz of whole pepper that had been steeping in snow water for 3 weeks. It was full of little creatures.
