Rare Cameras > Lancaster 'Rover' Detective Camera 1891 (5) > Lancaster Rover detective camera
The Lancaster rover was made in Birmingham, England in 1891 by one of the best known English manufacturers. I was often puzzled by the term 'detective' camera as they aren't exactly discreet. Later styles tend to be large, black leather covered box cameras with aperture and shutter controls on the front around the lens. But this early type does not look like a camera - more a mahogany box that could sit quietly on a shelf. The lens is recessed. It looks nothing like the normal bellows cameras of the time. Later models of the camera were also leather covered.
