Brewster, Sir David

David Brewster was a Scottish physicist whose work in optics played a key role in the development and popularisation of stereoscopy.

Brewster’s contribution to stereoscopy was the development of a refracting stereoscope, resulting in a practical, more compact and portable design suitable for photographic stereoviews. He called his viewer Lenticular Stereoscope and the device became later known as the Brewster-type stereoscope.

Brewster’s device initially attracted little interest of manufacturers in the United Kingdom. Seeking wider recognition, Brewster brought a prototype of his stereoscope to Paris. He was introduced by the Abbé Moigno to the instrument maker Jules Dubosq. Duboscq recognised the commercial potential and began manufacturing stereoscopes based on Brewster’s design.

The Brewster-type stereoscope became the most widely distributed stereoscope type in England and France during the 1850s and 1860s. The design formed the basis for later box-type stereoscopes.

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