Lot 129: Maharajah sliding box camera

George Hare, London; 61/2 x 61/2 inch, sliding box construction, polished mahogany body, lacquered-brass inset binding strips and fittings, the camera back with rack and pinion horizontal and vertical adjustment with locking screws, removable focusing screen, the top with inset label MANUFACTURED EXPRESSLY FOR H.H. THE MAHARAJAH OF PUNNAH, BUNDELCUND. BY GEORGE HARE, LONDON, the front-focusing box with a lens panel, one mahogany 7 x 9 inch single wet-collodion darkslide, three mahogany 7 x 9 inch double darkslides, one stamped REGISTERED. HORNE, THRONTHWAITE & WOOD. 28 JANUARY 1847. NO. 600, mahogany flap shutter and three tripod legs, in maker's fitted mahogany and brass bound box with inset white-metal plate MADE EXPRESSLY FOR H.H. THE MAHARAJAR OF PUNNAH BUNDELCUND BY GEORGE HARE, LONDON; two mahogany single darkslides, one mahogany double darkslide, three ebonised wood lens panels, a Ross, London brass bound No. 1 Cabinet lens no. 20664, a Ross, London No. 2a Extra Rapid lens no. 20845, a removable tray holding a Ross 8 x 5 SA Doublet lens no. 18104, a Ross 71/4 x 41/2 OA Doublet lens no. 18027, a Ross 71/4 x 41/2 LA Double lens no. 17066, three flap shutters, Waterhouse stops and a Ross lacquered-brass focus finder, all in a fitted wood box PROVENANCE An unidentified source, Calcutta, 1975, to Paul-Henry van Hasbroeck and thence to Jim Barron. LITERATURE P-H van Hasbroeck (1989), 150 Classic Cameras from 1839 to the Present, pp. 33-35. Jack Naylor, 'The Maharajar's Camera' in Photographica Journal, vol. 2 no. 2, March-April 1985, pp. 10-11. Arthur T. Gill, A Selection of Nineteenth Century British Cameras, n.d. un-paginated. NOTES George Hare (1825-1913) was born in Yorkshire where he was apprenticed to his father as a joiner. After working in York he moved to London and joined the firm of Thomas Ottewill before starting his own business circa 1856. The firm was originally located at 140 Pentonville Road before moving to 1 Lower Calthorpe Street, London, in 1864 and in 1877 it moved to 26 Calthorpe Street, London, where it remained until its demise. Hare introduced various designs of cameras including a binocular camera in 1860 and New Universal camera in 1871 which was based on W. J. Stillman's patent (number 3069) of 14 November 1871 which allowed for a swinging and tilting focusing back. This patent is incorporated into this camera and according to Barron: 'a particularly noteworthy feature of this camera is the method used to achieve rear tilt and swing (Stillman's patent) which would make demands on the most skilful joiner and accordingly would be expensive to produce. It is the only known example of this Stillman patent known [to me]'.