ABSTRACT
On 8 December 1768, Jean Bernoulli wrote from London:
I’ve been here in London for eight days. I am still not able to tell you about astronomers or observatories, but I will share the pleasant surprise which strikes an astronomer walking through the streets of this capital. You have surely heard talk of the richness and brilliance of the shops of London, but I doubt whether you can imagine how much astronomy contributes to the beauty of the spectacle: London has a great many opticians; the shops of these artists are full of refracting and reflecting telescopes, octants, &c. All these instruments, ranged and set out with care, strike the eye at the same time as imposing reflections on the mind. 1
