Cocarette

Contessa-Nettel's model of 1926 with Tessar image by Kimmo Kulovesi (Image rights)

The Cocarette was a folding camera for rollfilm. It was one of the first new products of the German camera maker Contessa-Nettel after the merger that led to the foundation of that company in 1919. The Cocarette camera series was continued after Contessa-Nettel itself was merged into the Zeiss-Ikon group. Like many other folding camera types of the 1920s it was available in a variety of configurations. It was made for focusing by shifting the lens assembly forward or backward. Advanced versions were made which allowed vertical lens movements. The cameras had only a reflecting type finder. Contessa-Nettel tried to simplify film loading with an insert that slides into the camera.

specifications

• Type: viewfinder folding camera
• Manufacturers: Contessa-Nettel, Zeiss-Ikon
• Year of launch: 1919
• Film/frame size: film rolls of type No. 120 for eight 6×9 exposures

examples with normal lens

Novar-Anastigmat lens in Sonto shutter image by fulvue (Image rights)

• Lens: Novar 1:6.3/10.5cm
• Shutter: Derval, speeds 1/25 sec. to 1/100 sec. plus B and T modes

or

• Lens: Nostar 1:6.8/10.5cm
• Shutter: Derval, speeds 1/25 sec. to 1/100 sec. plus B and T modes

example with slow lens

• Lens: Frontar 1:8/12cm
• Shutter: Derval, speeds 1/25 sec. to 1/100 sec. plus B and T modes

example with fast lens

• Lens: Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar 1:4.5/105mm
• Shutter: Compur, three modes, speeds 1 sec. to 1/250 sec.
• Extra: Spirit level

links

Cocarette 209 (519/2) with additional Wire frame finder image by fulvue (Image rights)	image by rst12 (Image rights)
Zeiss-Ikon's variants

• Cocarette with Tessar explained at Flickr.com
• Cocarette and Piccolette at "collectible Cameras" [1]
• Cocarette with Meyer lens at photo.net [2]
• Cocarette and Cocarette Luxus at Pacific Rim camera [3]
• Contessa-Nettel Cocarette at www.collection-appareils.com by Sylvain Halgand