This achromatic telescope had an oak barrel and five brass draw tubes to allow it to fold up small enough to be carried in a pocket. The other brass fittings include a pivoted eyepiece cover and an objective lens cap.

The initials 'W.S.S.' are inscribed on the objective lens cap. These refer to Admiral Sir William Sidney Smith (1764-1840), who once owned the telescope. Sidney Smith, as he always called himself, joined the Royal Navy in 1777 and fought both in the American Revolutionary War and in the French Revolutionary Wars. He first came to public attention in 1798 with his escape from the Temple prison in Paris, where he had been imprisoned after his capture in a naval expedition off Le Havre.

For images of Sidney Smith see PAD3506 and PAF3568.