The barrel of this non-achromatic telescope is covered with orange paper, while the three draw tubes are covered with marbled paper. The fittings are made of brass and include a cap for the objective lens. The cap for the eyepiece is missing. Black stop lines on the draw tubes indicate the telescope's optimum working length.

The style of the telescope suggests that it was made in about 1800, but it does not have an achromatic lens. Achromatic lenses had become common by the late18th century, since they eliminated the problem of coloured fringes appearing around objects, an effect caused by the distortion of the light as it passes through the lens (chromatic aberration).