Just have to ask...

[gabrioladude]

not that I was interested in buying it but I am curious

today on Ebay a Contax RF lens sold for $330 US
there were 23 bids on this item which seems unusally high (but the high level of interest would account for the high price)

the lens was a Zeiss Tessar 50mm f3.5

I have seen nice 50mm f1.5 Sonnars go for about $150

what is so special about this lens
obviously it must be rare
is there such an active "Contax collector" community out there?

 

[Sonnar Brian]

Depends on which it was. The Zeiss Opton Rigid Tessar is rare, and desirable.

The older collapsible Tessars usually sell for $150 or so. My 2.8 tessar was $85.

 

[gabrioladude]

it appears to be the rigid one

I understand rare, but why desirable
are the optics that much better?

I should have added the link in my original post
here it is

http://cgi.ebay.ca/Zeiss-Tessar-50m...286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66:2|65:13|39:1|240:1318

 

[Sonnar Brian]

That is a late-run, post-war lens. The optics are coated and it uses newer formula glass in it.

My 5cm F2.8 collapsible is an early one, early Contax I vintage with the Black ring on it. It is reputed to be the worst lens in the Zeiss line-up. Supposedly it was recomputed and improved early on, ~1935 or so. It gives quite good results.

 

[telemetre]

I vaguely remember a Zeiss brochure advertising the Tessar as very high resolution lens suitable for reproduction work and such. Also I guess it should somewhat be less flare prone, due to having less elements than the sonnars.

 

[micromontenegro]

There's some word (hype?) running around in the internets about that lens that pushes its value up.