The first bacteria were found in a man's own mouth.

1676 · 1683 · apart: 7 years

In 1683 Leeuwenhoek examined plaque from his teeth and from two old men who had never cleaned theirs, and saw crowds of 'animalcules' moving about 'very prettily'.

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The event

• Leeuwenhoek sees microbes1676 · Delft. Cloth merchant Antonie van Leeuwenhoek ground his own lenses and in 1676 wrote to the Royal Society about "animalcules" in a drop of water. It was the first time anyone had seen bacteria and protists.

17th century

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