Fowell
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| Fowell Cinefilm 35A image by Massimo (Image rights) |
Fowell (Manufacturas de Física Aplicada Fowell S.A.) was a camera-maker in Madrid, Spain, from the late 1940s until at least the mid-60s. The company's cameras all seem to be copies of foreign models (some possibly rebadged imports). Flickr user Massimo (supplier of the picture used here) gives the company address as Calle Vicero N° 3; That street does not appear to exist, but Calle Vivero does, near Cuatro Caminos.
Notes on Fowell at the collector's site Nuestra Colección de Cámaras[1] explain that in the 1940s and '50s, Spain had the legal device of 'introductory patents' (Patentes de Introducción), which made it possible for Spanish companies to copy products patented abroad for sale in Spain. Since import of goods into Spain was controlled and expensive, these patents might be the only way such products might be made available there, and they did require the original maker to be acknowledged, but they made the copying of foreign products easy, with little benefit to the foreign maker.[2]
Cameras
- Fowell Cinefilm 35A (a copy of the Spartus 35, 1950-55)
- Fowell Saeta (mid-50s)
- Viking (c.1960-65)[3]
Notes
Links
In French :
- Fowell page at Collection G. Even's site.
- Fowell cameras at Spanish collector's blog Las cámaras de Fernando
