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Lot Essay
The Lumière brothers, Auguste and Louis, were the first to achieve a satisfactory system for taking and projecting moving pictures made on a celluloid strip. Their invention, The Cinématographe, became the world's first commercially successful motion picture camera. The brothers began work designing a camera in 1894, after seeing a piece of Edison Kinetoscope film which had just arrived in Paris. This successful device with a mechanism based on a sewing machine movement was patented in France on 13 February 1895. The machine combined both a camera and a projector and the perforated film was moved intermittently by a claw mechanism.
The Lumière's called the device the Cinématographe. The first filming using the camera took place in Lyon, March 19th 1895, in what is now known as the Rue du Premier Film. Initially, the invention was kept secret, and only demonstrated at private screenings which met with great enthusiasm. The first public presentation was given at the Société d'encouragement a l'industrie Nationale in Paris, 22nd March 1895. The Lumières projected a film showing workers leaving their Lyons factory. Other films were quickly produced. The first presentation in London was given by Felicien Trewey on 20 February 1896, and regular shows began shortly afterwards in Leicester Square.
Although originally produced in late 1895 in a batch of just ten, these first models were prototypes for trial purposes and not availbale for sale. It was not until 1896 that the Cinématographe first went on sale to the general public. The following serial numbers correspond approximately to the years of production; all models were based on the original 1895 patent until a new model was introduced towards the end of 1898:
No. 1-10 : 1895
No. 10-250 : 1896
No. 250-450: 1896-1898
Only a few cameras bearing a serial number below 145 are known to have survived, and there is little doubt that this camera was one of those offered for sale in 1896.
The early Lumière cameras and projectors were originally designed to use only Lumière perforated film. Edison perforated film was first availiable from 1894, and some time (presumably in 1896) a slight adjustment was made to the mechanism of this projector so that it could use Edison perforated film in addition to the usual Lumière perforated film.
The letter records Louis Lumière's return to Lyon after a long absence due to an illness, and in it he thanks his friend for sending him a book. The letter is black bordered due to recent deaths of his wife Rose in Paris in 1923 and both of his sisters in 1924.
This projector is the only known cased example. It is unclear whether it was specially commissioned from the Lumières for presentation purposes. It is certain that the case was not made by Carpentier but does appear to have been constructed around the same time as the projector mechanism. One reason for enclosing the mechanism could have been to hide the unsightly gearing, or possibly for safety reasons.
The Lumière's called the device the Cinématographe. The first filming using the camera took place in Lyon, March 19th 1895, in what is now known as the Rue du Premier Film. Initially, the invention was kept secret, and only demonstrated at private screenings which met with great enthusiasm. The first public presentation was given at the Société d'encouragement a l'industrie Nationale in Paris, 22nd March 1895. The Lumières projected a film showing workers leaving their Lyons factory. Other films were quickly produced. The first presentation in London was given by Felicien Trewey on 20 February 1896, and regular shows began shortly afterwards in Leicester Square.
Although originally produced in late 1895 in a batch of just ten, these first models were prototypes for trial purposes and not availbale for sale. It was not until 1896 that the Cinématographe first went on sale to the general public. The following serial numbers correspond approximately to the years of production; all models were based on the original 1895 patent until a new model was introduced towards the end of 1898:
No. 1-10 : 1895
No. 10-250 : 1896
No. 250-450: 1896-1898
Only a few cameras bearing a serial number below 145 are known to have survived, and there is little doubt that this camera was one of those offered for sale in 1896.
The early Lumière cameras and projectors were originally designed to use only Lumière perforated film. Edison perforated film was first availiable from 1894, and some time (presumably in 1896) a slight adjustment was made to the mechanism of this projector so that it could use Edison perforated film in addition to the usual Lumière perforated film.
The letter records Louis Lumière's return to Lyon after a long absence due to an illness, and in it he thanks his friend for sending him a book. The letter is black bordered due to recent deaths of his wife Rose in Paris in 1923 and both of his sisters in 1924.
This projector is the only known cased example. It is unclear whether it was specially commissioned from the Lumières for presentation purposes. It is certain that the case was not made by Carpentier but does appear to have been constructed around the same time as the projector mechanism. One reason for enclosing the mechanism could have been to hide the unsightly gearing, or possibly for safety reasons.