Antique 1890s J. C Somerville ST. LOUIS Rapid Rectilinear 8x10 PORTRAIT Lens Rare
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:3735571 | Camera Type: Large Format |
| Modified Item: No | Brand: ST. LOUIS |
| Type: Portrait | Custom Bundle: No |
| MPN: Does Not Apply | Model: 8x10 |
Up for sale is a very rare antique 1890s J.C Somerville ST. LOUIS Rapid Rectilinear 8x10 Brass Portrait Lens.
The lens is marked "Rapid Rectilinear, Portrait Lens, 8 X 10, St. Louis Photo Supply Co., St. Louis, MO". I don’t know the lens exact focal length and max aperture, Probably 12-14 inches, f/6-7 ?? (Refer photos #11, 12)
The lens in good antique condition, the finish looks to be original and has some marks of wear and age, the lens glasses looks good, a bit unnoticeable ...cleaning marks but clean and clear for normal use, only have something like stains inside the rear elements (see photos #9, 10), but no affect upon images in my opinion.
No mounting flange, no lens cap, no iris diaphragms.Please check the photos carefully for more details before purchasing, the sale is final.
Sold as is, no return, no refund.
The story about the Rapid Rectilinear Lens:http://throughavintagelens.com/2009/09/the-rapid-rectilinear-lens/
Vintage Kodaks from the early part of the twentieth century usable for fine art photography will most commonly come equipped with either an Anastigmat or a Rapid Rectilinear lens. Although the Rapid Rectilinear is the older design, when stopped down to f/16 or higher it is extremely sharp and, surprisingly, has excellent color rendition.
The Rapid Rectilinear, a famous lens, has great historical significance and represents a landmark advance in photographic technology. This has been described by Dr. John Loomis at the University of Dayton (original source Rudolf Kingslake):
“One of the most important photographic objectives ever made was the famous Rapid Rectilinear or Aplanat of 1866. This design came midway between the invention of photography in 1840 and the introduction of the Anastigmat in 1890, and lenses of this type were fitted to all the better cameras for nearly sixty years, a record scarcely surpassed by any others.
By 1865 photographers had three types of lenses available to them: the simple landscape meniscus, the Petzval Portrait lens, and the wide-angle Globe lens or the Ross Doublet. What they needed was an intermediate lens covering about ±24° at f/6 or f/8, which, of course, had to be free from distortion.
(a) Dallmeyer Wide-Angle Rectilinear (b) Rapid Rectilinear
The Rapid Rectilinear lens was introduced by J. H. Dallmeyer in 1866. We do not know what led him to this highly successful design, but it may have been an assembly of two Grubb-type landscape aplanats about a central stop. Dallmeyer’s patent showed a lens that was manufactured and sold under the name of Wide-angle Rectilinear (Brit. Pat. 2, 502/66; U.S. Pat. 79, 323.) The front and rear components were similar but not identical, the front being larger than the rear, as shown in Figure (a). Very soon Dallmeyer found that it was better to make the two halves identical (Fig. (b), and this arrangement became the well-known Rapid Rectilinear. Most previous rectilinear (i.e., distortion less) lenses had been of low aperture, and Dallmeyer was therefore justified in calling his lens rapid, although the aperture was only f/8 or f/6 at the most.
Simultaneously and independently an almost identical design appeared in Germany called the Aplanat. This was designed and manufactured by Dr. H. A. Steinheil (1832 – 1893). As Steinheil and von Seidel (the mathematician who had recently established the theory of lens aberrations) were good friends, it is probable that the Aplanat had been designed on proper scientific principles, and Steinheil naturally supposed that Dallmeyer had pirated his invention. The argument became heated, and letters from both parties appeared in the scientific journals. When the smoke cleared it appeared that Steinheil had priority but by only a few weeks. Simultaneous inventions are actually quite common. The need is there, the necessary technology has been developed, and we must expect to find several inventors in various countries all working along similar lines.
.......
The lens is marked "Rapid Rectilinear, Portrait Lens, 8 X 10, St. Louis Photo Supply Co., St. Louis, MO". I don’t know the lens exact focal length and max aperture, Probably 12-14 inches, f/6-7 ?? (Refer photos #11, 12)
The lens in good antique condition, the finish looks to be original and has some marks of wear and age, the lens glasses looks good, a bit unnoticeable ...cleaning marks but clean and clear for normal use, only have something like stains inside the rear elements (see photos #9, 10), but no affect upon images in my opinion.
No mounting flange, no lens cap, no iris diaphragms.Please check the photos carefully for more details before purchasing, the sale is final.
Sold as is, no return, no refund.
The story about the Rapid Rectilinear Lens:http://throughavintagelens.com/2009/09/the-rapid-rectilinear-lens/
Vintage Kodaks from the early part of the twentieth century usable for fine art photography will most commonly come equipped with either an Anastigmat or a Rapid Rectilinear lens. Although the Rapid Rectilinear is the older design, when stopped down to f/16 or higher it is extremely sharp and, surprisingly, has excellent color rendition.
The Rapid Rectilinear, a famous lens, has great historical significance and represents a landmark advance in photographic technology. This has been described by Dr. John Loomis at the University of Dayton (original source Rudolf Kingslake):
“One of the most important photographic objectives ever made was the famous Rapid Rectilinear or Aplanat of 1866. This design came midway between the invention of photography in 1840 and the introduction of the Anastigmat in 1890, and lenses of this type were fitted to all the better cameras for nearly sixty years, a record scarcely surpassed by any others.
By 1865 photographers had three types of lenses available to them: the simple landscape meniscus, the Petzval Portrait lens, and the wide-angle Globe lens or the Ross Doublet. What they needed was an intermediate lens covering about ±24° at f/6 or f/8, which, of course, had to be free from distortion.
(a) Dallmeyer Wide-Angle Rectilinear (b) Rapid Rectilinear
The Rapid Rectilinear lens was introduced by J. H. Dallmeyer in 1866. We do not know what led him to this highly successful design, but it may have been an assembly of two Grubb-type landscape aplanats about a central stop. Dallmeyer’s patent showed a lens that was manufactured and sold under the name of Wide-angle Rectilinear (Brit. Pat. 2, 502/66; U.S. Pat. 79, 323.) The front and rear components were similar but not identical, the front being larger than the rear, as shown in Figure (a). Very soon Dallmeyer found that it was better to make the two halves identical (Fig. (b), and this arrangement became the well-known Rapid Rectilinear. Most previous rectilinear (i.e., distortion less) lenses had been of low aperture, and Dallmeyer was therefore justified in calling his lens rapid, although the aperture was only f/8 or f/6 at the most.
Simultaneously and independently an almost identical design appeared in Germany called the Aplanat. This was designed and manufactured by Dr. H. A. Steinheil (1832 – 1893). As Steinheil and von Seidel (the mathematician who had recently established the theory of lens aberrations) were good friends, it is probable that the Aplanat had been designed on proper scientific principles, and Steinheil naturally supposed that Dallmeyer had pirated his invention. The argument became heated, and letters from both parties appeared in the scientific journals. When the smoke cleared it appeared that Steinheil had priority but by only a few weeks. Simultaneous inventions are actually quite common. The need is there, the necessary technology has been developed, and we must expect to find several inventors in various countries all working along similar lines.
.......
