Lawley Wet plate camera
The Lawley Wet plate camera is a 19th-century wet-collodion plate camera, a large-format wooden field instrument used with hand-coated glass plates exposed and developed while still wet. Cameras of this type were sold for professional and serious amateur photographic use during the wet-plate era.
Auction evidence for the Lawley Wet plate camera is thin: a single UK saleroom hammer result of £900 in November 2025 is the only data point available, so any sense of what one is worth today rests on that lone sale rather than an established range. Condition of the bellows, ground glass and woodwork, along with the presence of original plate holders and a period lens, can swing the price a wet-plate camera sells for considerably either side of that figure.
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 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 2025 | £900 | Flints Auctions | |
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Auction: Fine Photographica (Lot 473) Title: A W. Lawley 5x5" Wet Plate Sliding Box Camera
Description:
1860-, with unmarked Waterhouse stop brass lens, body, F, lens, F-VG/E, complete with ground glass screen and one wet plate holder Footnote: This lot |
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| Jan 2021 | £434 | Flints Auctions | |
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Auction: Cameras, Scientific & Collectables (Lot 726) Title: A W. Lawley & Sons Wet Plate Tailboard Camera
Description:
1860-, with Rodenstock-Weitwinkel-Aplanat f12 120mm lens, brass, serial no. 502469, body, G, lens mount modified and front rise locking knob missing, |
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Frequently asked questions
What is a Lawley Wet plate camera worth today?
On the only recorded UK auction hammer result, a Lawley wet plate camera sold for £900 in late 2025, so that figure is the best current reference for value.
How much does a Lawley wet plate camera sell for at auction?
With just one verified sale in the data, the price a Lawley wet plate camera sells for is represented by a single £900 hammer result rather than an established range.
What affects the value of a wet plate camera like this?
Completeness drives price: an original lens, intact bellows, sound woodwork and surviving plate holders all push the value up, while missing parts or heavy restoration pull it down.