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Collector’s value

Hasselblad’s first civilian camera, the Hasselblad 1600F, is one of the most innovative and influential cameras in modern times. In 1945 and ’46 the Gothenburg-based company created the first concept drawings and wooden prototypes.

The word Rossex, hand painted on the prototype, was the original proposed name. The camera was launched by Victor Hasselblad himself in New York on 6 October 1948. It was the first medium-format single-lens reflex camera with interchangeable optical components.

Today Hasselblad is still regarded as one of the world’s foremost camera manufacturers. Despite all the various models and technological developments the camera is still recognisable by its distinctive design.Collector’s value involves using persistence and knowledge to acquire all the objects of a certain type or brand.

There are many collectors and even more collections, ranging from children who collect erasers to millionaires who collect sports cars. Hasselblad is interesting to collectors of cameras and technology and also to collectors of items associated with Gothenburg, so called “göteborgiana”.

An object can be valuable because it completes a collection. A bit of wood with no real function or material value can also be precious – in this case how it all began. That is why this prototype stands proudly by itself on the shelf above the large collection of Hasselblad cameras.

6701

Rossex prototype

A prototype from 1946 of what later became Hasselblad’s first working civilian camera. The prototype is basically a cube made of black-painted wood with metal detailing.

The model name Rossex is hand painted above the lens. The prototypes are often given a name that is later not used for the working cameras. The name Rossex was later changed to Hasselblad. The name of the model was 1600F. The prototype is 14.5 cm deep, 9.5 cm wide and 9 cm high. The weight is 780 grams.

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6702

Lunar camera

Hasselblad’s camera designed for use on the Moon. It has the model name of Lunar Surface Super Wide Camera. The camera was made in 1968 for photographing the Moon’s surface. It was intended for use at the 1969 Moon landing but this particular example was never used. The camera is black with white lettering. It is 19.5 cm deep, 13 cm wide and 16 cm high. The weight is 1.45 kg.

The first Hasselblad photographs from space were taken in 1962 by astronaut Walter Schirra. Hasselblad was then given sole right to develop Project Apollo’s cameras, which had to be custom made for the very special conditions on the Moon’s surface. The cameras were left on the Moon. The astronauts wanted to save weight so they would not unnecessarily risk the Lunar Module’s possibilities of returning to the Command/Service Module, which was in orbit around the Moon. Only the film magazines were brought back. Twelve Hasselblad cameras are said to still lie on the Moon’s surface.

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6703

Camera 500C

A camera with the model name 500C. The museum’s example was made in 1963 but the 500C models began being produced in 1957. The camera has a design that many people would call “classic Hasselblad”.

It has a compact rectangular form and is mostly black but has grey elements in the camera’s metal detailing. It is 16 cm deep, 10.5 cm wide and 10,5 cm high. The weight is 1.45 kg.

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6704

The SWC wide
angle camera

Hasselblad’s Super Wide Camera. The SWC, is, as its name reveals, a camera used for wide angle photography. Production of the models began in 1959 but the museum’s example dates from 1970. The camera is 15 cm deep, 11 cm wide and 13 cm high. The weight is 1.35 kg.

The camera’s construction is based on its lens, which is a true symmetrical wide angle lens. The lens is fixed on a shortened camera body.

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6705

Prototype 127

This prototype is named the Hasselblad 127, which refers to 127 film with a 4 x 4 cm image format. 127 film is no longer used much although it can be obtained from some retailers.

The prototype’s appearance is very different from the other Hasselblad cameras in the exhibition. Instead of the rectangular shape, this prototype is 12.5 cm wide but only 7.5 cm deep (including the lens). The height is 10 cm and the weight is 640 grams.

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6706

Camera 1600F

A 1600F model camera (the camera for which the Rossex was the prototype). Production of these models began in 1949, with only about 50 units being made in the first year.

This particular example was made in 1950. The camera is black with grey metal detailing. It is 16 cm deep, 10.5 cm wide and 10.5 cm high. The weight is 1.41 kg. The magazine’s appearance first appeared in 1952 and was in use until 1954.

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6707

Prototype

We do not know much about this prototype other than what we can see with the naked eye. It is made of wood and was made in the 1940s. On the prototype we can see several places where the black or grey paint has been rubbed off.

Nothing is written on it and nothing has been written about it. Yet it is easy to see that it is indeed supposed to represent a Hasselblad camera. It is 13 cm deep, 10.5 cm wide and 10 cm high. The weight is 760 grams. The prototype does not have a lens.

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6708

Camera from 1946

A camera made in 1946. The museum does not have much information about this camera other than that it is apparently the first functioning camera model. It is black with metal-coloured detailing. The camera is 15 cm deep, 10 cm wide and 10 cm high. The weight is 1.15 kg.

Do you know anything more?

We’d love to hear!

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6709

Anniversary camera

An anniversary camera with the designation Gray 500EL/M. The camera was made in 1982 to mark the 20th anniversary of astronaut Walter Schirra’s space voyage during which a Hasselblad was used for the first time in space. Schirra was the third American in space and was not satisfied with the photographs taken on the two previous space voyages.

He took with him a Hasselblad 500C, and that was the beginning of Hasselblad’s involvement in the U.S space programme.

The camera is white with black and metal-coloured detailing. It is 16.5 cm deep, 9.5 cm wide and 14.5 cm high. The weight is 1.87 kg. On the side of the camera body is a plate with the text: “Hasselblad 1962–1982, 20 years in space, No. 0001”.

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6710

Prototype 500C

A prototype of the model 500C. It was made in 1974 and is number 1 of a series of 13. The prototype has a lens but no back. The prototype is 12.5 cm deep, 10.5 cm wide and 10.5 cm high. The weight is 960 grams.

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6711

Prototype 2000FC

A prototype of the model 2000FC. It was made in 1972 and is 7.5 cm deep, 10.5 cm wide and 9 cm high. The small measurements are due to the fact that the prototype lacks both a lens and a back. Nor is the folding viewfinder that should be on the top in place.

The weight is 600 grams. From the back we can see right into the prototype’s interior.

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6712

Camera 2000FC

A model 2000FC camera made in 1977. The camera lacks a lens, back and viewfinder. It is 9.5 cm deep, 10.5 cm wide and 9.5 cm high. The weight is 590 grams. The camera is black.

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6713

Anniversary
camera

An anniversary camera with the designation Gold 2000FC/M. This anniversary camera was produced in 1985 to mark the founding of the Hasselblad trading company in 1885, but was already assembled in 1984. 1,500 units of the camera were produced and were sold in a specially designed wooden box.

The camera is black with gold-coloured detailing. It is 18 cm deep, 10.5 cm wide and 10.5 cm high. The weight is 1.57 kg.

A gilt silver plate on the side of the camera body states: “Hasselblad 1885–1985, 100 years in photography, Camera No. 001”.

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6714

Camera
Super Wide C

A Super Wide C camera made in the 1980s. This camera is described as an experimental camera. It is not very similar to the classic Hasselblad in its appearance but is instead narrow and tall. The depth is 10.5 cm including the lens, the width is 14 cm and the height is 18.5 cm. The weight is 740 grams.

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6715

Camera 503CW Millennium

A camera with the designation 503CW Millennium. The camera was made in 2000, which explains its model name, Millennium. The camera lacks a back and lens. It is 9.5 cm deep, 11 cm wide and 10.5 cm high. The weight is 670 grams. The camera is black with metal-coloured detailing.

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6716