Carl Zeiss Jena 5cm 2.0 Sonnar

The serial number places the date of manufacture of the lens to 1936, probably. I have a collapsible Sonnar with a serial number about 100 higher than yours, and someone looked it up for me once upon a time. The book by Theile (available in German) would be the best bet to ascertain the production date. I don't have the book, but one or two German-speakers on RFF have the book, and may be willing to look it up for you. The lens is uncoated in its natural condition, but produces great images when clean.

Beautiful image attached to the post!
 
Not to hijack the thread, but anyone knows year of manufacture data for serial numbers of East German Zeiss Jena lenses?
 
Thanks a whole lot nzeeman!

That places my 50/2 Sonnar in CCTV mount between 1955 and 1958.
 
Thanks for both websites!

My Jena Sonnar is in LTM and it has number 2,232,xxx. It is not listed in the list of serial numbers. I was told by Mr. Small that mine is one of a batch of 200 lenses made for Sweden. How did he find this out?

Raid
 
lovely photos Daniel, do you notice much difference from the J-8M.. other than the contrast due to the lens coating?
 
The photos are wonderful. It is the photographer first, and then the developing and the lens.
 
There seem to be confusion since originally Jena was Carl Zeiss headquarters, but once Zeiss split between East and West it became the East German optical facility.
 
raid said:
I went back to my email exchanges with him in 2005. My lens glass comes from a Contaflex TLR camera according to Marc Small and Charles Barringer. He assured me that it "definitely" is genuine Zeiss made and not by Zeiss Jena, which is strange since the lens says "Zeiss Jena". Only 200 were made this way, so it is "rare".
Click to expand...
As best I recall a small run of LTM Sonnar 50/2 lenses were made during WWII for the military by Zeiss (about 2,000 pieces if I remember correctly) which at that time was a single company located in Jena. After WWII Zeiss split between East (Carl Zeiss Jena) and West (Carl Zeiss). I know a small second run of LTM Sonnars was made for Sweden, which was a very active trading partner of Nazi Germany, but your info seems to suggest that this second run was made by West German Zeiss after the war.

BTW the vast majority of LTM Sonnars are not factory issue but were assembled from parts looted from the factory in the confused days just after the war. To have a factory issue LTM is rare enough to have one from a small run is even better from a collector's point of view.

Michael
 
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