Aitchison Binoculars

The Boer wars of 1899-1902 saw British soldiers getting more than victory – the soldiers also got the now famous Aitchison binoculars - manufactured by British optical firm of the same name. The Anglo - South African wars demanded better equipment and this British company rose to the challenge and designed the revolutionary collapsible binoculars.

Patented in the 1880s, these collapsible binoculars were made using aluminum and are one of the earliest examples of the use of metal in manufacturing lightweight optical instruments. Unlike modern instruments that use prisms, the Aitchison binoculars produce an upright image by using a pair of Galilean telescopes with large convex front lenses and concave ones for the eyepieces. This gives the user the advantage of added depth perception, a three dimensional view for estimating distances and more stability in usage. It makes it easy on the eye to view things at a distance.

These binoculars primarily developed the concept that binoculars are essentially just two monoculars placed together to allow for two eye viewing and went on to improvise on it. The company developed a range of binoculars with 35 mm objective lens diameter, which adds to size and weight and has the advantage of boosting image brightness. This new product considered so revolutionary that the binoculars were fitted with variable iris diaphragms to allow the brightness to be reduced during the day.

Priced around £15-£60 in the UK and $70-$169 in the USA, these binoculars are an antique collector’s dream. There is not much resale value of this particular brand. Since it would be difficult to replace the defective parts also there are higher end models available in the, market today. The only value this has is for an avid collector who wants it for it’s intrinsic value. This is an original, quality binocular that is great to own and nice to gift.