Kwanon Prototype Camera

Kwanon Prototype Camera, numbered 2 on inside of base plate, black paint, with nickel-plated fittings, pop-up viewfinder, shutter speeds 2, 25, 40, 60, 100, 200, 500 , rewind knob, exposure counter on the front, central tripod bush on the base plate, and un-numbered screw-fit KasyaPa f/3. 5 50 mm. lens in nickel-plated mount, (brassing on the edges, optics cracked, shutter defective, mechanical condition and completeness not guaranteed). Provenance: From information supplied by the consignor, the camera was acquired ten years ago from the daughter of a real estate agent in the Bronx, New York, along with a Contax I and a Leica II, who reported that all three cameras had been in the family since the early 1950s. Note: The Kwanon is the earliest, pre-production form of the Canon camera. Its designer, GoroYoshida, was born in Hiroshima in 1900 and spent his early career repairing and modifying motion picture cameras and projection equipment, with trips to Shanghai in the late 1920s to procure parts. His skills, combined with the perception that the Leica and Contax Model I were "takane no hana" (beyond the reach) of most people, inspired Yoshida to design the first quality Japanese 35 mm. camera. Yoshida's task was made more difficult by the fact that, before 1945, Leitz held all of the major patents for 35 mm. camera production. The Leica's patented coupled rangefinder and viewfinder under one roof presented a particular problem. As Zeiss discovered with the Contax, anyone Read more…