Hunter& Sands Tailboard Camera
The Hunter & Sands Tailboard Camera is a British-made wooden field camera of the tailboard pattern, a folding plate-camera design that was standard for studio and outdoor view work in the late Victorian and Edwardian period. Cameras of this type used a hinged rear baseboard (the tailboard) that folded down to allow the rear standard to slide along rails for focus, and they accepted glass plates in dark slides.
At recent UK auction, hammer results for Hunter & Sands tailboard examples have sat between roughly £100 and £240, with the two tracked sales averaging about £170. Because the sample is small, what a given example is worth today depends heavily on completeness — bellows condition, presence of a lens, and original dark slides can swing the price a buyer sells for at saleroom level by a wide margin.
Sales History
Prices shown are UK auction hammer results — the wholesale level achieved in the saleroom. Neither buyer’s nor seller’s commission is included. Dealer and retail asking prices are typically higher.
| Date | Price | Source | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | £100 | Tennants Auctioneers | |
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Auction: Scientific & Musical Instruments, Cameras & Tools (Lot 166) Title: Hunter & Sands Plate Camera
Description:
6x4", mahogany body with brass fittings, with unnamed brass lens |
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| Aug 2023 | £238 | Flints Auctions | |
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Auction: Cameras & Scientific Instruments (Lot 548) Title: A Sands Hunter & Co. Tailboard Square Bellows Full Plate Mahogany & Bass Camera
Description:
body G-VG, front lens board modified for heavy lenses, ground glass in good condition, back standard capable of swing & tilt, front standard capable (Qty: 1) |
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