Wilson Bentley Photomicrograph of Stellar Snowflake No. 1205

This media is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Open Access page.

IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.

View manifest View in Mirador Viewer

Object Details

Creator

Bentley, W. A (Wilson Alwyn) 1865-1931

Notes

SPI No. SPI_263

Bentley No. 1205

Wilson A. Bentley first became fascinated with snow during his childhood on a Vermont farm, and he experimented for years with ways to view individual snowflakes in order to study their crystalline structure. He eventually attached a camera to his microscope, and in 1885 he successfully photographed the flakes. This photomicrograph and more than five thousand others supported the belief that no two snowflakes are alike, leading scientists to study his work and publish it in numerous scientific articles and magazines. In 1903 Bentley sent prints of his snowflakes to the Smithsonian, hoping they might be of interest to Secretary Samuel P. Langley.

Cite as

Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 31, Image No. SIA2013-09168

Repository Loc.

Smithsonian Institution Archives Capital Gallery, Suite 3000, MRC 507; 600 Maryland Avenue, SW; Washington, DC 20024-2520

Date

1890

Circa 1890

Local number

SIA RU000031 [SIA2013-09168]

Restrictions & Rights

No access restrictions. Many of SIA's holdings are located off-site, and advance notice is recommended to consult a collection. Please email the SIA Reference Team at osiaref@si.edu

No Copyright - United States

Type

Black-and-white photographs

Physical description

Albumen prints; 3.5 x 3;

Data Source

Smithsonian Institution Archives

Topic

Photomicrography

Snowflakes

Metadata Usage

CC0

Record ID

siris_arc_308063