An almost box-fresh Leica IIIg camera produced for the Swedish military in the 1960s sold for more than three times its estimate at the Leitz Photographica Auction in Germany on the weekend.
The camera, still in its original box and with its original Swedish-language instructions, was one of only 125 of the premium Leica screw-mount model produced in a special batch for Sweden’s armed forces.
Originally estimated to sell for between €140,000 and €150,000 (£121,000 to £129,700/$162,500 to $174,000), the boxed camera ended up selling for €456,000 (£394,000/$529,400) at the sale in Wetzlar, Germany, on Saturday (13 June).
Letiz Photographica Auction said in its listing: “A highly important and exceptionally rare military version of the Leica IIIg, produced in satin black paint for the Swedish Armed Forces and engraved with the distinctive Three Crowns of Sweden on the rear of the top plate.
“Of this special Swedish Army batch, only approximately 125 cameras are recorded (serial range 987901–988025), making it one of the rarest regular-production screw-mount Leicas of the post-war era.
“The present example is preserved in almost New Old Stock condition — an extraordinary state for a military-issued camera. The black paint finish remains beautifully intact, with minimal handling traces and small bubbles appearing in the paint. Swedish Army IIIg cameras were generally issued and used; examples surviving in such remarkable preservation are exceedingly rare, making this a true condition-rarity.”
The sellers noted the lot combined “extreme rarity, outstanding state of preservation, and full original accessories in a manner seldom seen on the market”.
The military IIIg was one of a number of rare military cameras to be offered for sale at this June’s sale.
A one-off Astro-Berlin rifle camera built for the German Luftwaffe during World War II, previously featured on Kosmo Foto, failed to sell, but other popular lots included a rare original Leica MP – one of only 402 – which sold for €600,000 (3518,800/$696,700).
I'm a New Zealander who has been living in London since the mid-1990s, shooting film seriously since the year 2000. Kosmo Foto was launched in 2012 and has since become a film brand, with the release of my first films Kosmo Foto Mono 35mm (2017) and Kosmo Foto Mono 120 (2019).
I’m doing everything I can to promote film photography in the 21st Century, and help it survive and thrive. If you want to write something for Kosmo Foto, please drop me a line at foto.dowling@gmail.com.
