Serial numbers
Revision as of 07:14, 23 February 2011 by Heritagefutures (talk | contribs) (→Bausch & Lomb from 1942 (alphanumeric))
This is a work in progress.
Manufacturers commonly use serial numbers to uniquely identify a camera lens or a camera body. Knowledge of these numbers allows, in many cases, to date the specific camera in hand. This page provides known serial number and date sequences for cameras, lenses and shutters.
Contents
- 1 Serial numbers of camera bodies
- 2 Serial numbers of lenses
- 3 Serial numbers of shutters
Serial numbers of camera bodies
|
| Production Code 'YRIS' in a Kodak Brownie II 110 image by Dirk HR Spennemann (Image rights) |
Kodak
Many of the Kodak bodies also use the CAMEROSITY encoding used for the lenses. A number of the 1970s and 1980s bodies have a four letter code, where the last two letters stand for the year and the first two letters stand for the Kodak production cycle in that year. Note that Kodak breaks the year into thirteen four-week cycles, based on the International Fixed Calendar.[1]. Thus the CAMEROSITY code 'YRIS', ie. 0687, indicates that the cameras was produced in the 6th four-week unit of 1987 (ie aprox late May to mid June).
Serial numbers of lenses
Bausch & Lomb
Until 1942 Bausch & Lomb used a standard numeric sequence[2]
Bausch & Lomb until 1942 (numeric)
| Serial nº | Year |
| 1 | 1876 |
| 150 | 1877 |
| 350 | 1878 |
| 800 | 1879 |
| 1100 | 1880 |
| 1450 | 1881 |
| 1750 | 1882 |
| 2000 | 1883 |
| 2500 | 1884 |
| 3000 | 1885 |
| 3800 | 1886 |
| 4500 | 1887 |
| 5300 | 1888 |
| 6375 | 1889 |
| 7600 | 1890 |
| 9200 | 1891 |
| 10000 | 1892 |
| 11700 | 1893 |
| 13900 | 1894 |
| 17000 | 1895 |
| 20000 | 1896 |
| 25000 | 1897 |
| 28000 | 1898 |
| 30000 | 1899 |
| 32000 | 1900 |
| 33000 | 1901 |
| 35000 | 1902 |
| 40000 | 1903 |
| 45000 | 1904 |
| 52000 | 1905 |
| 57000 | 1906 |
| 63000 | 1907 |
| 69000 | 1907 |
| 76000 | 1909 |
| 82000 | 1910 |
| 86000 | 1911 |
| 89000 | 1912 |
| 95000 | 1913 |
| 98000 | 1914 |
| 104000 | 1915 |
| 110000 | 1916 |
| 120000 | 1917 |
| 129000 | 1918 |
| 135000 | 1919 |
| 140000 | 1920 |
| 148000 | 1921 |
| 155000 | 1922 |
| 160000 | 1923 |
| 170000 | 1924 |
| 175000 | 1924 |
| 180000 | 1925 |
| 185000 | 1926 |
| 190000 | 1926 |
| 195000 | 1927 |
| 200000 | 1928 |
| 205000 | 1929 |
| 215000 | 1929 |
| 225000 | 1930 |
| 230000 | 1931 |
| 235000 | 1932 |
| 240000 | 1934 |
| 244000 | 1935 |
| 247000 | 1935 |
| 250000 | 1936 |
| 260000 | 1937 |
| 270000 | 1938 |
| 280000 | 1939 |
| 290000 | 1940 |
| 300000 | 1940 |
| 310000 | 1941 |
| 320000 | 1942 |
Bausch & Lomb from 1942 (alphanumeric)
From 1942 Bausch & Lomb used an alphanumeric code for the lenses, where the first letter encodes the year and the second letter (apparently) the class of lens
| Letter | First Letter (year) | Second Letter (lens class) |
| A | 1941 | |
| B | 1945 | |
| C | 1949 | |
| D | 1953 | |
| E | 1957 | |
| F | 1961 | photographic lens |
| G | 1963 | |
| H | 1959 | |
| J | 1955 | |
| K | 1951 | |
| L | 1947 | |
| M | 1943 | |
| N | 1962 | |
| P | 1958 | |
| R | 1954 | |
| S | 1950 | |
| T | 1946 | |
| U | 1942 | |
| V | 1944 | |
| W | 1948 | |
| X | 1952 | |
| Y | 1956 | |
| Z | 1960 |
Goerz American Optical Company
Part of the serial number sequences of lenses made by the Goerz American Optical Company[3]
| Serial nº | Years |
| 0001-140935 | 1902-1903 |
| 150000-190170 | 1903-1905 |
| 200941-224267 | 1906-1908 |
| 223775-226630 | 1908-1909 |
| 310001-315734 | 1911-1914 |
| 315735-320000 | 1914-1918 |
| 751240-756909 | 1927-1937 |
| 755300 | 1934 |
| 756910-765730 | 1937-1945 |
| 765730-771199 | 1945-1948 |
| 771200-780169 | 1948-1954 |
| 791500 | ~1955 |
Kodak lenses
From 19¶¶ onwards, Kodak encoded its lenses, and in many instances, also camera bodies, using a two letter combination, encoded with the word 'CAMEROSITY,' which resolves as follows:
| C | A | M | E | R | O | S | I | T | Y |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 0 |
The letters represent the last two digits of the year. Thus a lens with the serial number EA12345 would have been produced in 1942
Ross
Part of the serial number sequence of lenses made by Ross [4]
| Serial nº | Year |
| 100 | 1840 |
| 3,000 | 1850 |
| 6,500 | 1860 |
| 12,500 | 1870 |
| 20,000 | 1875 |
| 44,430 | 1880 |
| 47,31x | 1885-1890 |
| 50,000 | 1890-1895 |
| 81,96x | 1911 |
| 86,000 | 1918 |
| 95,000 | 1921 |
| 100,000 | 1924 |
| 105,000 | 1925 |
| 110,000 | 1927 |
| 115,000 | 1930 |
| 120,000 | 1931 |
| 125,000 | 1933 |
| 140,000 | 1939 |
| 200,000 | 1947 |
| 213,000 | 1946-7 |
| 250,000 | 1960 |
Schneider-Kreuznach
Part of the serial number sequence of lenses made by Joseph Scheider & Co, Kreuznach, Germany [5]
| Serial nº | Year |
| 30,000 | December 1919 |
| 40,000 | May 1920 |
| 50,000 | January 1922 |
| 100,000 | January 1925 |
| 200,000 | June 1928 |
| 300,000 | February 1929 |
| 400,000 | April 1931 |
| 500,000 | June 1932 |
| 600,000 | August 1933 |
| 700,000 | October 1934 |
| 800,000 | September 1935 |
| 900,000 | May 1936 |
| 1,000,000 | November 1936 |
| 1,200,000 | December 1937 |
| 1,400,000 | November 1938 |
| 1,600,000 | September 1939 |
| 1,800,000 | June 1942 |
| 2,000,000 | September 1948 |
| 2,200,000 | July 1949 |
| 2,400,000 | October 1950 |
| 2,600,000 | May 1951 |
| 2,800,000 | November 1951 |
| 3,000,000 | May 1952 |
| 4,000,000 | October 1954 |
| 5,000,000 | February 1957 |
| 6,000,000 | May 1959 |
| 7,000,000 | February 1961 |
| 8,000,000 | March 1963 |
| 9,000,000 | February 1965 |
| 10,000,000 | January 1967 |
| 11,000,000 | November 1968 |
| 11,500,000 | July 1970 |
| 12,000,000 | September 1972 |
| 12,500,000 | March 1974 |
| 13,000,000 | December 1976 |
| 13,200,000 | September 1977 |
| 13,400,000 | October 1978 |
| 13,600,000 | October 1979 |
| 13,800,000 | January 1981 |
| 14,000,000 | October 1983 |
| 14,100,000 | January 1985 |
| 14,200,000 | August 1986 |
| 14,300,000 | November 1988 |
| 14,400,000 | January 1991 |
| 14,460,000 | February 1992 |
| 14,480,000 | January 1993 |
| 14,500,000 | November 1993 |
| 14,510,000 | January 1994 |
| 14,520,000 | May 1994 |
| 14,540,000 | January 1995 |
| 14,560,000 | April 1995 |
| 14,590,000 | January 1996 |
| 14,600,000 | April 1996 |
| 14,620,000 | November 1996 |
| 14,623,340 | January 1997 |
| 14,651,520 | January 1998 |
| 14,690,300 | January 1999 |
| 14,726,600 | January 2000 |
| 14,756,400 | January 2001 |
| 14,788,450 | January 2002 |
| 14,820,970 | January 2003 |
| 14,853,700 | January 2004 |
| 14,890,800 | January 2005 |
| 15,000,000 | November 2008 |
Taylor, Taylor & Hobson
Part of the serial number sequence of lenses made by Taylor, Taylor & Hobson [6]
| Serial nº | Year |
| 100 | 1895 |
| 5,000 | 1900 |
| 19,500 | 1914 |
| 71,000 | 1918 |
| 117,xxx | 1926-7 |
| 250,000 | 1939 |
| 303,xxx | 1944 |
| 300,xxx | 1947 |
| 688,03x | 1965 |
Voigtländer
Part of the serial number sequence of lenses made by Voigtländer [7]
| Serial nº | Year |
| 4033 | 1852 |
| 5000 | 1854 |
| 10,000 | 1862 |
| 27,449 | 1884 |
| 30,000 | 1885 |
| 31,000 | 1886 |
| 32,000 | 1887 |
| 34,000 | 1888 |
| 36,000 | 1889 |
| 38,000 - 39496 | 1890 |
| 40,000 | 1891 |
| 41,911 | 1892 |
| 43,685 | 1893 |
| 45,431 | 1894 |
| 46,454 | 1895 |
| 47,771 | 1896 |
| 49,084 | 1897 |
| 54,168 | 1898 |
| 54,896 | 1899 |
| 65,691 | 1900 |
| 68,193 | 1901 |
| 70,682 | 1902 |
| 72,638 | 1903 |
| 75,479 | 1904 |
| 79,288 | 1905 |
| 83,477 | 1906 |
| 88,057 | 1907 |
| 97,999 | 1908 |
| 101,649 | 1909 |
| 105,778 | 1910 |
| 110,347 | 1911 |
| 113,569 | 1912 |
| 118,634 - 125,975 | 1913 |
| 126,001 | 1914 |
| 132,726 | 1915 |
| 137,682 | 1916 |
| 139,108 | 1917 |
| 142,853 | 1918 |
| 144,419 | 1919 |
| 154,426 | 1920 |
| 160,008 | 1921 |
| 172,136 | 1922 |
| 194,086 | 1923 |
| 216,948 | 1924 |
| 227,929 | 1925 |
| 248,505 | 1926 |
| 279,710 | 1927 |
| 365,562 | 1928 |
| 537,338 | 1929 |
| 671,174 | 1933 |
| 803,220 | 1934 |
| 1,026,690 | 1935 |
| 2,000,000 | 1937 |
| 2,718,530 | 1942 |
| 2,700,000 | 1945 |
| 3,000,000 | 1947 |
| 3,220,000 | 1951 |
| 3,300,500 | 1952 |
| 3,461,400 | 1953 |
| 3,600,000 | 1954 |
| 3,731,000 | 1955 |
| 4,001,000 | 1956 |
| 4,303,000 | 1957 |
| 4,514,000 | 1958 |
| 4,802,000 | 1959 |
| 5,033,000 | 1960 |
| 5,473,000 | 1961 |
| 5,900,000 | 1962 |
| 6,219,000 | 1963 |
| 6,423,000 | 1964 |
| 6,664,222 | 1965 |
| 9,999,999-10,000,150 | 1971 |
Zeiss (Carl Zeiss Jena)
Part of the serial number sequence of lenses made by Carl Zeiss Jena [8]
| Serial nº | Year |
| 137,418-200,520 | 1912 |
| 208,473-249,350 | 1913 |
| 249,886-252,739 | 1914 |
| 282,800-284,500 | 1915 |
| 285,200-288,100 | 1916 |
| 289,087-298,157 | 1917 |
| 298,215-322,748 | 1918 |
| 322,799-351,611 | 1919 |
| 375,194-419,823 | 1920 |
| 433,273-438,361 | 1921 |
| 422,899-498,006 | 1922 |
| 561,270-578,297 | 1923 |
| 631,500-578,297 | 1924 |
| 631,500-648,500 | 1925 |
| 666,790-703,198 | 1926 |
| 722,196-798,251 | 1927 |
| 903,100-908,150 | 1928 |
| 919,794-1,016,885 | 1929 |
| 922,488-1,239,697 | 1930 |
| 1,239,699-1,365,582 | 1931 |
| 1,364,483-1,389,279 | 1932 |
| 1,436,671-1,456,003 | 1933 |
| 1,500,474-1,590,000 | 1934 |
| 1,615,764-1,752,303 | 1935 |
| 1,674,882-1,942,806 | 1936 |
| 1,930,150-2,219,775 | 1937 |
| 2,267,991-2,527,984 | 1938 |
| 2,527,999-2,651,211 | 1939 |
| 2,652,000-c2,678,000 | 1940 |
| 2,678,326-2,790,346 | 1941 |
| 2,800,000- ? | 1942 |
| Post-War Production | |
| 3,000,000-3,200,000 | 1945-1949 |
| 3,200,000-3,470,000 | 1949-1952 |
| 3,470,000-4,000,000 | 1952-1955 |
| 4,000,000-5,000,000 | 1955-1958 |
| 5,000,000-6,000,000 | 1958-1961 |
| 6,000,000-6,000,000 | 1961-1964 |
| 7,000,000-8,000,000 | 1964-1967 |
| 8,000,000-9,000,000 | 1967-1970 |
| 9,000,000-10,000,000 | 1970-1975 |
Zeiss (Carl Zeiss Oberkochem/ West Germany)
Part of the serial number sequence of lenses made by Carl Zeiss Jena [9]
| Serial nº | Year |
| 10,000-500,000 | 1946-1951 |
| 500,000-1,100,000 | 1951-1953 |
| 1,100,000-2,600,000 | 1953-1959 |
| 2,600,000-3,000,000 | 1959-1961 |
| 3,000,000-4,000,000 | 1961-1965 |
| 4,000,000-5,000,000 | 1965-1969 |
| 5,000,000-6,000,000 | 1969-1971 |
| 6,000,000-7.300,000 | 1971-1975 |
Serial numbers of shutters
Compur shutters
Sourced from A Lens Collector's Vade Mecum.[10]
| Serial nº | Year |
| 214,000 | 1912 |
| 250,000 | 1914 |
| 450,000 | 1920 |
| 500,000 | 1922 |
| 600,000 | 1925 |
| 750,000 | 1926 |
| 850,000 | 1927 |
| 950,000 | 1928 |
| 1,000,000 | 1929 |
| 1,150,000 | 1930 |
| 1,500,000 | 1931 |
| 1,800,000 | 1932 |
| 2,250,000 | 1933 |
| 2,700,000 | 1934 |
| 3,200,000 | 1935 |
| 3,750,000 | 1936 |
| 4,250,000 | 1937 |
| 4,850,000 | 1938 |
| 5,400,000 | 1939 |
| 6,000,000 | 1947 |
| 6,200,000 | 1948 |
| 6,500,000 | 1949 |
| 7,000,000 | 1950 |
| 7,700,000 | 1951 |
| 8,500,000 | 1952 |
Notes
- ↑ From 1928 to 1989 Kodak used Moses B. Cotsworth's International Fixed Calendar which broke the solar yeat into thirteen months Wikipedia entry
- ↑ Sourced from a discussion thread at http://forum.mflenses.com/viewtopic.php?t=20524 mflenses].
- ↑ Sourced from largeformatphotography.info
- ↑ From: Wilkinson, M, and C Glanfield. 2001. A Lens Collector's Vade Mecum, CD-rom Version 3F. Edited by A. N. Wright. Cornwall, UK: David Matthews Associates. Chapter 11, Pages 87-88.
- ↑ From: Herstellungsdaten von Schneider-Objektiven. | Schneider Official Site]
- ↑ From: Wilkinson, M, and C Glanfield. 2001. A Lens Collector's Vade Mecum, CD-rom Version 3F. Edited by A. N. Wright. Cornwall, UK: David Matthews Associates. Chapter 13, Page 71.
- ↑ From: Wilkinson, M, and C Glanfield. 2001. A Lens Collector's Vade Mecum, CD-rom Version 3F. Edited by A. N. Wright. Cornwall, UK: David Matthews Associates. Chapter 14, Page 6-9.
- ↑ From: Wilkinson, M, and C Glanfield. 2001. A Lens Collector's Vade Mecum, CD-rom Version 3F. Edited by A. N. Wright. Cornwall, UK: David Matthews Associates. Chapter 7, Page 99-101.
- ↑ From: Wilkinson, M, and C Glanfield. 2001. A Lens Collector's Vade Mecum, CD-rom Version 3F. Edited by A. N. Wright. Cornwall, UK: David Matthews Associates. Chapter 7, Page 99-101.
- ↑ From: Wilkinson, M, and C Glanfield. 2001. A Lens Collector's Vade Mecum, CD-rom Version 3F. Edited by A. N. Wright. Cornwall, UK: David Matthews Associates. Chapter 12. Pages 65-66
