Lot 36: DRAPER, HENRY. 1837-1882, attributed.

"Clavius, the moons diameter 30 inches," probably from Hastings-on-Hudson, NY, February 28, 1874, albumen print mounted, 8 x 7 inches (205 x 180 mm), titled and inscribed in pencil "Voigtlander 16305," framed.

BY THE FIRST MAN TO TAKE A CLEAR PHOTOGRAPH OF THE MOON? The attribution to Draper is uncertain, but he is known to have been using a Voigtlander lens for astrophotography around this time. A doctor, he was also a keen astronomer and directed an expedition to photograph the 1874 transit of Venus. "16305" is almost certainly the serial number of the lens, indicating it was manufactured in 1870.