This article gives an account of the life trajectory of the Grubb Refractor Telescope of the National Astronomical Observatory of Chile. It is framed in a theoretical reflection based on the praxeological turn and the new materialisms, conceiving the telescope as the bearer of a non-human agency that influences the sociomaterial conditions of the observatory and interacts closely with its human actors. Two modalities in which the agency of the Grubb Telescope operates are analyzed. First, from its absence, and how this affects the relocation and construction of the Lo Espejo Observatory. Secondly, from its presence and the leading role it plays in the modernization process of the observatory in the mid-twentieth century. The sources reviewed include press articles, correspondence about the observatory in funds of the Ministries of Public Works and Public and archives of the University of Chile.