The Monster Telescopes, Erected by the Earl of Rosse, Parsonstown

William Parsons (1800-1867), 3rd Earl of Rosse and later president of the Royal Society, was responsible for building the largest telescope of his time, nicknamed the 'Leviathan'. It enabled the Earl to describe the spiral structure of galaxies. This volume reissues two contemporary accounts of the telescope. The first, by the Earl himself and published in 1844, provides a comprehensive description of the workings of both the 'Leviathan' and the smaller telescope which preceded it, together with detailed accounts of the construction of both telescopes. The second, by an anonymous author, first appeared in the Dublin Review in March 1845. Together with a brief description of the telescopes, it outlines the history and problems of telescope manufacture from Galileo onwards. This situates the telescopes, and the difficulties the Earl faced during the 18 years he took to build the 'Leviathan', in their wider context.