Ref: XXX - Rare Boer War (1899-1902) 5th Devon Regiment Officer of The Watch Telescope (Maker Marked).
Rare Boer War (1899-1902) Officer of The Watch 5th Devon Regiment Telescope (Maker Marked).
A very rare example in excellent condition maker marked and engraved to the 5th Devon Regiment. This example being from the family of the veteran and never been offered for sale before.
Ross, London
1830 The Ross firm was founded by Andrew Ross in Wigmore Street, London.
c1840 Ross started making lenses for cameras. The lenses were engraved A. Ross, London. Ross had an early association with Carl Zeiss in Jena; Zeiss licensed some Ross patent designs particularly for EWA lenses and in turn Ross had a licence for the British Empire to make some Carl Zeiss lens types.
Zeiss built a factory in London, mainly to produce binoculars; some camera lenses also were produced.
1855 Ross also made some cameras, from about 1855 to the 1910s.
1858 Andrew Ross died, a year before the firm moved premises.
After Andrew died the firm was run by his son T. R. Ross, and the lenses were engraved Ross, London. J. H. Dallmeyer, who had married Ross's second daughter, Hannah, inherited one third of his employer's large fortune and the telescope manufacturing portion of the business.
1859 The firm moved to Brook Street with a sales department in New Bond Street.
WWI Ross took over Zeiss's London factory at Mill Hill.
Optics are superb and a wonderful example.
