History: The Cone Centralisateur lens design (which is a petzval design with a with a slight modification to the rear part), is absolutely famous and sought after in the late 19th century and even more today. It was the flagship lens for Jamins workshop in the early 1850ies and 1860ies in Paris, but Jamin was not the only one to make Cone Centralisateurs. There were a handfull of other mostly small makers, who also adopted the lens layout with minor modifications. This specimen is a fine example for such a lens: it features the can type cone centralisateur layout.

The engraving reads:

'Garin & Cie - 17 Faubourg Montmatre - PARIS'

Otherwise the lens features no serial numbers or more hints on who the maker was. There is no information on the internet about this maker, so i can only assume it was a small one, in the very early days of the photographic era, very likely early 1850ies.

Condition: This brass beauty comes in a great condition. It shows some wear but also a fantastic patina, as it was not polished. The rack & pinion mechanism seems complete, not working though. Another stunning feature here, is the middle part which features a possibility for washer stops. As with Jamins cone centralisateurs, the lens can be unscrewed right in the middle, and it is possible to use the front part (there is a second thread for that) as a landscape lens with a focal lenght of about 700mm at F10.

The glass is in a really good condition also, i cant see much of cleaning marks there, and besides that there is no obvious damage or seperation visible. 

With its fast open aperture of about F4.5 and a focal lengh of 360mm (or almost 14"), this lens will work anywhere from 8x10 to 10x12 format in portrait mode.

In landscape mode it will have an estimated focal lenght of 700mm, covering huge ULF formats like 20" x 24" !

It comes with the original flange.



height: 22cm
width: 10cm
weight: 1900gr

Insured and tracked shipping cost:

Germany - 20 eur
EU* - 50 eur
Worldwide - 90 eur**

*(the site offers only 2 shipping variations, DE and worldwide. buyers from EU please either contact me beforehand for a reduced EU cost, or after buying so i can send a refund over the difference)

** the high cost is due the high insurance value

Importent Note: This item comes from my private collection and is around 100 years old (antique). I try my best to describe all the faults and major damage which are relevant for the function of this item. But the actuall item can show signs of wear and also some cosmetic blemishes/damage which is not described in the auction text! When buying this item the buyer agrees to this terms.