VINTAGE LEITZ WETZLAR MICROSCOPE SM WITH LIGHT SOURCE, ORIGINAL MANUALS, CASE For Sale

VINTAGE LEITZ WETZLAR MICROSCOPE SM WITH LIGHT SOURCE, ORIGINAL MANUALS, LOCKING CASE
Appears to be in working order. Includes external light source and everything in photos including original locking case with key, registration card, manuals and assorted items. Interior foam of case shows some deterioration, small chips, scratches on microscope finish.
Please see photos for details. Note lighting variations may alter colors of items in photos.
Shipping will be calculated based on buyer's location.Weight: ~ 28 pounds
From the New York Microscope Company's webpage:

As early as 1849, Karl Kellner formed the Optical Institute in Wetzlar, Germany. The company first produced telescopes and later started to manufacture microscopes. In 1865, Ernst Leitz joined the Optical Institute as a partner. When Ernst Leitz took over the company in 1869, he renamed it the Optical Institute of Ernst Leitz and eventually increased the production of Ernst Leitz microscopes. After 1885, Leitz started manufacturing polarizing microscopes. By the 20th century, the Leitz company was manufacturing the modern style of microscopes and microscope stands.

Then in 1912, Dr. Max Berek was hired and designed the first Leitz camera lens leading to microscope cameras becoming a top-selling product by 1924. In 1920, Ernst Leitz II took over the company. Microscope production was halted during the war, and Leitz reentered the microscopy market after the war ended. His three sons took over the company after him, and in 1952, Gunther Leitz started making Leica cameras.

Then in the 1970s, the competition in the microscope industry increased due to many Japanese microscope manufacturers producing high-quality and affordable microscopes. With this increased competition, many microscope manufacturers, including Ernst Leitz Wetzlar microscopes, merged with other companies. Wild Heerbrugg bought out the Leitz Wetzlar Company in 1974 but allowed Leitz to continue to manufacturecompound microscopesuntil the last Leitz relative left the company in 1986. At this time, Ernst Leitz Wetzlar GmbH and Wild Heerbrugg combined to create the Wild Leitz Group. Eventually, the company changed its name to Leica in 1986 due to the popularity of the name. The current name is a combination of two words: the first three letters of "Leitz" and the first two letters of "camera." Today, the company mostly sellsdigital microscope camerasand sports optics like binoculars, monoculars, riflescopes, and rangefinders. Leica Camera prides itself on its innovative, sustainable, and nearly perfect lenses, and the high quality found in the German industrial process is evident in Leica products. There are numerous divisions of Leica, including Leica Microsystems, which still manufactures microscopes.

B669