Vintage Koilos Bed Plate Folding Camera
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
Early 20th century
This early 20th-century vertical-folding plate camera is a classic example of the hand-and-field equipment popular between 1900 and 1910. The camera features a robust wood case finished with black grain leather covering and is supported by chrome-plated brass rails and struts that facilitate the drop-down bed mechanism.
It incorporates a flexible black fabric bellows system that expands to set the lens at the required focal distance. The central component is the pneumatic Koilos shutter system, patented by Kenngott circa 1905–1906, which is prominently marked with "Koilos" in a stylized white font along the upper curve of the housing. Adjustments are managed via a pneumatic air-escapement dial on the shutter faceplate, with focus controlled by dual metal rails on the bed and a celluloid distance scale strip marked in meters.
Designed for glass plates, typically in the 9x12 cm format, this camera represents the intricate mechanical craftsmanship of European photographic apparatus from the Edwardian era.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 1
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 0
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Physical characteristics
- Materials
- Wood, black grain leather, chrome-plated brass, glass, fabric, celluloid
- Dimensions
- H 6.5" x L (extended) 7.5" x W 4.75" x L (closed) 1.75"
Technical characteristics
- Format
- Typically 9x12 cm glass plates
- Focus system
- Dual metal guide rails with celluloid focus scale
- Shutter type
- Pneumatic Koilos shutter
Design
- Inscriptions
- Koilos engraved on shutter housing, Meter focus scale indicator
- Shutter controls
- Pneumatic air-escapement settings dial
Identification
- Source note
- Described from a single auction-house listing published on Invaluable (reproduced with Invaluable's permission). Details apply to that one example; other examples of the type may differ, and the listing is supplementary evidence, not authentication.
- Maker named in listing
- Unspecified European manufacturer (Kenngott shutter system)
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.