1928 RAF Blackburn Ripon Torpedo Bomber Airplane Montage Glass Negative OOAK For Sale

1928 RAF Blackburn Ripon Torpedo Bomber Airplane Montage Glass Negative OOAK

Original, one-of-a-kind (OOAK) antique 4x5 gelatin silver glass plate negative produced in 1928: an extraordinary original period newspaper art department composite/photomontage master copy negative created to illustrate the Royal Air Force\'s formidable new carrier-borne strike weapon: the British Blackburn Ripon II biplane releasing a live aerial torpedo directly over target water.

Accompanied by both its outer kraft darkroom morgue envelope and its exceptional period handwritten descriptive insert:

• The Outer Envelope Notation:

  \"Plane drops / torpedo\"

• The Period Insert Note:

  \"The British wonder plane, the Blackburn Napier \'Ripon II\' which is capable of a speed of 150 miles an hour, yet able to remain in the air 12 hrs with full load. Discharge a torpedo weighing a ton & drop bombs. 1928\"

Historical & Archival Context:

First flown in prototype form in the late 1920s and ordered into production for the Fleet Air Arm in 1928, the Blackburn Ripon was Great Britain’s frontline carrier-based torpedo bomber, designed to operate from Royal Navy aircraft carriers like HMS Furious and Courageous. Powered by a Napier Lion water-cooled engine, the aircraft was engineered to deliver a massive 18-inch naval torpedo against hostile warships.

Because capturing a high-speed airborne aircraft, falling ordnance, and naval surface water simultaneously on a single plate was nearly impossible under real-world testing conditions, the newspaper\'s art department created an editorial composite illustration:

• The Three Composite Elements: The art retouchers expertly mounted a sharp studio-cutout of the Blackburn Ripon biplane (bearing RAF fin flashes, rudder serial markings \"N 231\", and fuselage roundels) flying low above a falling naval torpedo, positioned directly over a real photograph of open sea featuring a conical target buoy marking the impact zone.

• The Master Copy Negative: Once assembled and retouched with airbrushing and gouache, the art department re-photographed the entire montage onto this 4x5 glass plate copy negative, using it to burn the metal photo-engraving halftones for the morning newspaper edition.

This plate stands as a rare and captivating dual artifact—documenting the interwar emergence of modern naval aerial torpedo warfare while highlighting the ingenious, hands-on darkroom photo-illustration techniques of 1920s press artists.

Specifications:

• Format: Heavy antique silver gelatin glass plate composite copy negative, produced in a newspaper darkroom in 1928.

• Archive Ephemera Included: Accompanied by its original vintage tan kraft darkroom filing sleeve, as well as the detailed period handwritten descriptive slip outlining the Ripon\'s performance specs and weaponry.

Please Note: This listing is for the original antique glass plate negative, its period paper archive sleeve, and the period handwritten insert only. Any positive photographic images shown in this listing are modern inverted digital scans provided solely as a visual representation to show what a finished photograph prints like. No physical paper photograph, modern print, or paper product of any kind is included with this purchase.

Condition:

Very Good antique condition. Heavy glass plate is structurally sound with no cracks, fractures, or perimeter glass breaks. Emulsion across the primary aircraft, torpedo, surface water, and target buoy is clean, sharp, and stable, exhibiting high contrast and crisp delineation characteristic of period press montage copy plates. Displays typical authentic edge silvering and faint handling wear strictly along the extreme outer borders outside the image area. Accompanied by the original period kraft morgue filing envelope and matching period handwritten informational slip.

The glass plate negative measures 4 x 5In.
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