Lerebours Daguerreotype
The Lerebours Daguerreotype is a 19th-century wooden plate camera made for the daguerreotype process, the first commercially successful photographic system introduced in 1839. Lerebours, a Paris optician and instrument maker, was among the early producers supplying daguerreotype apparatus during the format's brief commercial peak in the 1840s and 1850s.
With only two recorded UK auction hammer results — wholesale saleroom prices that exclude buyer's and seller's commission — pricing data is thin: a 2004 sale at £1,200 and a more recent 2024 result of £353. As of today the small sample makes a reliable median impossible to quote, and what an individual Lerebours daguerreotype is worth at auction depends heavily on completeness, provenance, condition of the wooden body and brass fittings, and whether the original optics are present. Exceptional, fully documented examples have historically sold for far more than utilitarian or incomplete bodies.
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 2024 | £353 | Chiswick Auctions | |
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Auction: Photographica (Lot 10) Title: A Lerebours et Secretan Daguerreotype lens
Description:
A Lerebours et Secretan Daguerreotype lens missing lens objectives, together with various other brass lenses and brass lens optical parts. |
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| Nov 2004 | EUR 1,200 | Leitz Auction | |
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Auction: Leitz Auction 6 (Lot AI_6_24000) Title: Lerebours & Secretan Daguerreotype lens
Description:
very rare lens in original condition with three front Waterhouse stops, height 12cm Estimate: EUR 1,800 - EUR 2,200 |
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Frequently asked questions
What is a Lerebours Daguerreotype camera worth today?
Recorded UK auction hammer prices range from £353 in 2024 to £1,200 in 2004, but with only two data points the value of any individual example depends strongly on condition, completeness and provenance.
How much does a Lerebours Daguerreotype sell for at auction?
Recent evidence suggests a clean but unexceptional example can sell for a few hundred pounds at hammer, while historically documented or complete outfits have achieved four-figure prices.
Why does the price vary so much?
Daguerreotype-era cameras are valued on originality of the wooden body, brass lens and plate holders, plus provenance — small differences in completeness can shift the price by an order of magnitude.