A tapered single draw telescope by Negretti + Zambra, with fish-skin covering
Stock Number: 212
£120
This is an interesting single draw telescope, fully working, probably dating from around 1920, with the brass draw black coated as was common for N+Z, but with some form of fish-skin type coating.
Dimensions
17.5 inches long
Circa
1920
Country of manufacture
UK and Ireland
Description
This telescope is 26cm long when closed, and just over 17 inches fully open. It is engraved “Negretti & Zambra London” on the first draw, through the black coating of the brass. The eyepiece cover, the main body and the splash shield are covered with grey fish-skin, with the edges protected by brass end pieces. There is some minor damage to the fish-skin on the splash shield (shown on a photo)
The largest diameter of the tapered body is 48mm. When the eyepiece is unscrewed, all four eyepiece lenses are contained in a separate internal tube, which is dismantlable for cleaning. All the lenses are in good condition.
Ask the Dealer
Dealer information
Telescope Collector
I first started using a telescope in the 60s, to identify aeroplanes arriving at Yeadon airport, in Yorkshire. Then I started to collect and restore vintage brass scopes in the 1990s. The collection boomed later, in the early days of the internet, rising to around 300 in number. Since then I have made a lot of friends via the internet, advising them on how to identify, date or repair their scopes. At the age of 74 I need to disperse these wonderful bits of engineering history, because they still work today as well as they did 200+ years ago! That is the fascination....Some of my collection have already been sold to collectors spread around, in the UK, USA, Ireland, Israel, France and Germany. Several have been returned to the UK descendants of the people who made them, or relatives of their previous owners, because they found the stories on my website. Now the collection needs to be dispersed more systematically. If you are looking for a specific telescope, just ask, maybe I have one! If you want better pictures of the telescopes shown here, these can be emailed. Nick Denbow, based in Alresford, Hampshire: contact via email on [email protected]
