Thornton-Pickard Hythe Camera Gun Mk III
Thornton Pickard
Category
Photographic technology
Date
1916 - 1934
Materials
Metal, Glass, Wood
Measurements
225 x 120 mm; 970 mm (Length)
Place of origin
Altrincham
Collection
Fox Talbot Museum, Wiltshire
NT 1524948.1
Summary
Thornton-Pickard Hythe Camera Gun Mk III H. Lens: f8, 11". Shutter: Three-blade leaf type, operates on 'B' with external switch to open blades for setting and registration. Construction: Metal, with wooden handles. Format: 14, 2 ¼" x 1 ⅜" exposures on 2 ¼B (120) roll-film. Focusing: None. Serial Number: 4057. (note dot following the number) The film canister and exposure area was located in the square box at the rear of the cooling jacket. It used 120mm film, and could hold 12 or 16 frames worth (sources vary on this point). A shutter and lens were located near the muzzle end of the device. This camera is based on the chassis of the Lewis machine gun and was intended to train pilots in air combat. Instead of bullets it shot target checking images in the rhythm of a machine gun. A bull's-eye target is exposed with the image so that "hits" can be determined on the developed photographs. (lacking dummy machine gun magazine which is apparently usually missing). The Mk 111 H was sold commercially after World War I and remained in use by the RAF until the early years of World War II. It was made to very closely match the handling, balance, and weight of a Lewis Gun (one of the most common aerial guns at the time with British and US forces). It could be fixed to the top wing of a biplane or on a flexible ring mount just like a real gun, and was maneuvered and aimed exactly like a real Lewis. The shutter was tripped by the trigger, just like a gun, and film was advanced by using a replica of the Lewis’ charging handle. In addition, a real Lewis magazine mounted atop the device, and could be changed just like a Lewis.
Provenance
Part of the Fenton Collection. A gift from British Film Institute in 2017. From 1986-1999, part of BFI collection for the Museum of the Moving Image. BFI purchased collection in 1986 from James Fenton's Museum of Photography, Port Erin, Isle of Man 1976-1986.
Makers and roles
Thornton Pickard , manufacturer