Hi Alex, terrific question. A Dutch father and son team, named Hans and Zacharias Janssen, are widely credited with creating the very first compound microscope in 1590. In fact, Zacharias was an eyeglass maker, and together they discovered that if they put a lens at the top and the bottom of a tube, and looked through it, objects on the other end were magnified! Even though their version of the microscope only magnified between 3-9 times, it laid the groundwork for many future breakthroughs! I hope that helps answer your question! To learn even more about the history of microscopy, check out this great article: https://www.microscope.com/education-center/articles/history-of-microscopes/