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Hans and Zacharias Janssen
In 1595, Hans and Zacharias Janssen were inventors who produced the first compound microscope by combining two convex lenses within a tube. This invention enabled people to observe cells. -
Robert Hooke
Robert Hooke discovered the cellular composition of cork under his microscope. He also introduced the word cell to science. -
Anton van Leeuwenhoek
Anton van Leeuwenhoek was the first to observe and describe single celled organisms, which he referred to as "animalcules". -
Matthias Schleiden
Matthias Schleiden discovered that all plants were made up of cells. -
Theodor Schwann
Theodor Schwann discovered that animals were made up of cells. -
Rudolph Ludwig Karl Virchow
Rudolph Virchow’s most widely known contribution was that he found new cells that could be produced only from division of existing cells. Rudolph Virchow suggested that all cells come from pre-existing cells. He stated that all living things come from other living things.
