Featured in this lot is this 1939 Leica IIIa D. R. P. camera with an Ernst Leitz, Wetzlar Summitar 50mm F/2 lens made by Ernst Leitz in Wetzlar, Germany. The Optical Institute in Wetzlar, Germany, which Karl Kellner founded is where Ernst Leitz got his?start. The founding year is listed as 1850 in the older Leitz trade catalogues, but by the early 20th century, the date is listed as 1849 in Leitz publications. The company's initial focus was on telescopes, but by the 1850s, microscopes had taken center stage. Following the death of his partner Friedrich Christian Belthle from tuberculosis at the age of 29, Kellner took over the workshop. The business was renamed as Kellner and Belthle Optical Institute. Ernst Leitz (1843?1920), an engineer that Belthle hired in 1865, joined him as a partner the following year. After Belthle passed away in 1869, Leitz assumed control of the business and changed its name to the Optical Institute of Ernst Leitz (Optischen Institut von Ernst Leitz). At the time, Leitz was just 26 years old. Leitz had a difficult first year due to the Franco-Prussian War's outbreak in 1870. Nevertheless, he managed to capitalize on the growing demand for microscopes. The Leitz company expanded its product line to include binoculars, still and cinematic projectors, and other optical instruments between 1889 and 1911. In 1892, a sales office was established in New York City, which subsequently adopted the name E. Leitz, U.S.A. The Leitz company employed 950 people and produced 9000 microscopes annually by 1910. Ernst Leitz hired Oskar Barnack (1879?1936) in 1911 with the goal of creating a portable camera. Dr. Max Berek (1886?1949) completed his studies in mathematics and mineralogy in Berlin and began working for Ernst Leitz in 1912. He used mathematics to design the 50mm anastigmat, the original Leitz camera lens. Using the new lens system, Barnack created the 35mm camera in 1913. The "UR-Leica Prototype" is the name given to it today. Ernst Leitz II (1870?1956), his son, took over as the company's sole proprietor after his father's death in 1920. Ernst Leitz II made the decision to commercialize Barnack's invention in 1924. "Leica," a combination of Lei(tz) Ca(mera), was the name given to the new 35mm cameras. The first Leica cameras were put on the market in 1925. Leica released the first 35mm interchangeable lens cameras in 1930. Ernst Leitz GmbH was the new name given to the merged branches of the Leitz companies. The German government forced the Leitz company to switch to war production during World War I, but Max Berek, the famous optical scientist at Leitz, declined to work with the Nazi party during World War II. His professorship was taken away from him by the German government, but it was given back to him in 1946. Management acquired the Leica camera company in 1992. Leica Microsystems and Leica Geosystems were the two divisions of the Leica group formed in 1997. The camera shows a metal construction and shows the maker and the model on the top of the camera. The serial number is present on the top and reads, "No. 512243". The camera features a magnified rangefinder and a viewfinder, an easy to read matte silver slow speed dial and frame counter, a Leica Summitar lens with a serial number of "657142", and a professional 3/8" trip-pod thread. The camera shows some wear from its age and use over the years, but no signs of obvious damage are present on the camera or the lens. The camera measures 2 3/16" L x 5 5/8" W x 2 3/4" H and weighs 1 pound and 6 ounces.

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