This artifact is a small cardboard box with a paper label containing information about plate developers that originally held ‘Imperial’ brand photographic plates. It contains an unknown number of photographic plates in black envelopes, which may be unexposed.
Accession Number: 2018.ast.52
Alternative Name:
Primary Materials: Cardboard, Paper, Glass
On the paper label on the box:
“DEVELOPERS FOR PLATES”
“THE IMPERIAL DRY PLATE Co., Ltd.,
CRICKLEWOOD, LONDON, N.W. 2”
“SPEC RAPID 14757B”
“EXAMINED BY ZG”
There is a large amount of additional information related to the formulas for plate developers also on this label.
On the first envelope, written in pencil:
“Photometer Plates”
Dimensions (cm): 14.5 x 9.0 x 2.2
This box was manufactured to contain sensitive photographic plates. The black envelopes were intended to protect undeveloped plates from light.
Good. The box is intact, with some scuffs around the edges and corners. There are some smudges on the surfact, particularly across the label. The black envelopes do not appear to entirely fix the box, and so they are bent in order to fit in.
Associated Instruments:
Box: Imperial Dry Plate Co., Ltd., Cricklewood, London
Date of Manufacture: c. 1930
These objects were likely moved from the David Dunlap Observatory in Richmond Hill, Ontario in 2008, upon the sale of the observatory. It was stored at the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics until 2017, when it was moved to a new storage location in McLennan Physical Laboratories.
These plates may be unexposed. The reason for their storage in the black envelopes is unknown. Do not remove the plates from the envelope except in a dark room.
Historical Notes:
Themes: