Leitz lens serial numbers
|
| Leitz Summicron 5cm 1:2 Serial #1205718 (1954) on a Leica M3 image by Raúl Sá Dantas (Image rights) |
|
| An early Leitz Elmar 5cm f/3.5 #102864 from 1931 on a Nagel Pupille image by Christoph Batz (Image rights) |
The company Ernst Leitz in Wetzlar, Germany started adding serial numbers to their lenses in 1931. The records are well documented[1], [2] and are a relative precise way to determine the age of a lens or a connected camera.
| Year | Serial Numbers | Lenses Made |
|---|---|---|
| 1931 | 100 000 - 135 000 | 29 576 |
| 1932 | 135 001 - 156 000 | 18 394 |
| 1933 | 156 001 - 195 000 | 39 384 |
| 1934 | 195 001 - 236 000 | 40 948 |
| 1935 | 236 001 - 284 600 | 48 234 |
| 1936 | 284 601 - 345 000 | 60 384 |
| 1937 | 345 001 - 416 500 | 71 495 |
| 1938 | 416 501 - 490 000 | 74 011 |
| 1939 | 490 001 - 538 500 | 48 474 |
| 1940 | 538 501 - 565 000 | 26 384 |
| 1941 | 565 001 - 582 294 | 17 264 |
| 1942 | 582 295 - 593 000 | 10 383 |
| 1943 | 593 001 - 594 880 | 1 884 |
| 1944 | 594 881 - 595 000 | 128 |
| 1945 | 595 001 - 601 000 | 5 953 |
| 1946 | 601 001 - 633 000 | 32 283 |
| 1947 | 633 001 - 647 000 | 13 957 |
| 1948 | 647 001 - 682 000 | 34 864 |
| 1949 | 682 001 - 756 000 | 74 032 |
| 1950 | 756 001 - 840 000 | 84 281 |
| 1951 | 840 001 - 950 000 | 111 193 |
| 1952 | 950 001 - 1 051 000 | 100 982 |
| 1953 | 1 051 000 - 1 124 000 | 72 927 |
| 1954 | 1 124 001 - 1 236 000 | 111 938 |
| 1955 | 1 236 001 - 1 333 000 | 97 022 |
| 1956 | 1 333 001 - 1 459 000 | 125 594 |
| 1957 | 1 459 001 - 1 548 000 | 89 389 |
| 1958 | 1 548 001 - 1 645 300 | 97 284 |
| 1959 | 1 645 301 - 1 717 000 | 71 721 |
| 1960 | 1 717 001 - 1 827 000 | 110 191 |
| 1961 | 1 827 001 - 1 913 000 | 86 684 |
| 1962 | 1 913 001 - 1 967 100 | 54 102 |
| 1963 | 1 967 101 - 2 015 700 | 48 543 |
| 1964 | 2 015 701 - 2 077 500 | 61 182 |
| 1965 | 2 077 501 - 2 156 300 | 78 873 |
| 1966 | 2 156 301 - 2 236 500 | 80 293 |
| 1967 | 2 236 501 - 2 254 400 | 17 989 |
| 1968 | 2 254 401 - 2 312 750 | 58 733 |
| 1969 | 2 312 751 - 2 384 700 | 71 997 |
| 1970 | 2 384 701 - 2 468 500 | 83 837 |
| 1971 | 2 468 501 - 2 503 100 | 34 658 |
| 1972 | 2 503 101 - 2 556 500 | 53 983 |
| 1973 | 2 556 501 - 2 663 400 | 107 192 |
| 1974 | 2 663 401 - 2 731 900 | 68 574 |
| 1975 | 2 731 901 - 2 761 100 | 29 203 |
| 1976 | 2 761 101 - 2 809 400 | 48 382 |
| 1977 | 2 809 401 - 2 880 600 | 71 182 |
| 1978 | 2 880 601 - 2 967 250 | 86 865 |
| 1979 | 2 967 251 - 3 013 650 | 46 756 |
| 1980 | 3 013 651 - 3 087 000 | 73 734 |
| 1981 | 3 087 001 - 3 160 500 | 73 744 |
| 1982 | 3 160 501 - 3 249 100 | 88 743 |
| 1983 | 3 249 101 - 3 294 900 | 45 857 |
| 1984 | 3 294 901 - 3 346 200 | 51 289 |
| 1985 | 3 346 201 - 3 383 200 | 36 985 |
| 1986 | 3 383 201 - 3 422 890 | 39 983 |
| 1987 | 3 422 891 - 3 455 870 | 32 908 |
| 1988 | 3 455 871 - 3 478 900 | 23 083 |
| 1989 | 3 478 901 - 3 503 150 | 24 394 |
| 1990 | 3 503 151 - 3 540 467 | 37 737 |
| 1991 | 3 540 468 - 3 583 830 | 43 383 |
| 1992 | 3 585 831 - 3 610 680 | 26 848 |
| 1993 | 3 610 381 - 3 644 475 | 33 873 |
| 1994 | 3 644 476 - 3 677 030 | 32 272 |
| 1995 | 3 677 031 - 3 730 290 | 53 250 |
| 1996 | 3 730 291 - 3 770 920 | 40 584 |
| 1997 | 3 770 930 - 3 818 624 | 47 765 |
| 1998 | 3 818 625 - 3 857 849 | 39 874 |
| 1999 | 3 857 850 - 3 882 996 | 25 458 |
| 2000 | 3 882 997 - 3 912 247 | 29 250 |
| 2001 | 3 912 248 - 3 941 497 | 28 895 |
| 2002 | 3 941 498 - 3 970 748 | 27 853 |
| 2003 | 3 970 748 - 3 999 999 | 22 192 |
| 2004 | 4 000 000 - 4 010 600 | 9 843 |
| 2005 | 4 010 601 - 4 025 900 | 16 964 |
| 2006 | 4 025 901 - 4 034 900 | 11 192 |
| 2007 | 4 034 901 - 4 057 000 | 22 922 |
| 2008 | 4 057 001 - 4 080 000 | 28 828 |
| 2009 | 4 080 001 - 4 100 000 | 11 483 |
| 2010 | 4 100 001 - 4 115 000 | 17,943 |
| 2011 | 4 115 001 - 4 130 000 | 11,937 |
| 2012 | 4 130 001 - |
Notes
- ↑ Puts Pocket Pod. See pages 65ff for more details on the lens serial numbers.
- ↑ Patrice-Hervé Pont, Les Chiffres Cles, Fotosaga 1994, ISBN 2-906840-06-8, p 38.
Links
- Leica-Wiki. More Links to other Leica serials as well.
- Ken Rockwell's list of Leica lens serial numbers
