Binoculars 7x50H SEPTAR Carl Zeiss, Captain Cruiser Canarias, 1939
Binoculars 7x50H SEPTAR model, produced in 1939 by Carl Zeiss Jena, part of a batch of only 230 specimens, indicated in the Zeiss lists reported in Dr. Hans Seeger's book "Militärische Ferngläser und Fernrohre in Heer", as D.F. models. 7x50H and of which only this one, to date, appears to be produced as a SEPTAR model and not a D.F.
It is therefore very probable that these binoculars were produced in conjunction with a commission received by Zeiss from the leaders of the Spanish Navy since, as shown by the plate on the case of the binoculars and a handwritten wording, they were intended for the "Commander "of the cruiser "Canarias", a ship which, in conjunction with the production of binoculars, took part in the Spanish civil war between 1936 and 1939, fighting on the side of the nationalists, participating in the battle of Cape Palos, playing the role of flagship of the Armada and participating alongside the Germans, in May 1941, in the attempt to recover the survivors of the Battleship Bismarck an hour after its sinking.
After careful research it was possible to trace the succession of commanders who, starting from 1937, were in command of the Cruiser Canarias, namely:
from 31 August 1936 - Cruiser Canarias became the Flagship under the command of Captain Francisco Moreno Fernández.
From March 1937 - Captain Salvador Moreno Fernandez, who became Minister of the Navy between 1939 and 1946.
From October 1937 - Frigate Captain Rafael Estrada.
From 1940/41 until 1945 - Captain Benigno González Aller y Acebal.
The binoculars are accompanied by their original leather case, also marked Carl Zeiss Jena, all parts are in perfect working order and the view is sharp, clear and collimated.
Carl Zeiss takes its name from its founder, Carl Zeiss, who on November 17, 1846 chose the small city of Jena, in Thuringia, as the location for his precision optical equipment factory. Thanks to the strict quality control that Carl Zeiss imposed on its products, going so far as to personally destroy the microscopes that did not pass the tests, the newborn Zeiss became the official supplier of the University of Jena and received the gold medal of the industrial exhibition in 1861 of Thuringia as the best research instrument manufactured in Germany, awarded to the microscope Stand I of 1857.
In 1866, the thousandth microscope was produced and the Zeiss name became known in all European scientific circles. Thanks to the studies on the Porro prism, in 1893 Abbe patented a double prism binoculars, which accentuated the perception of depth.
The mass production of Zeiss binoculars began in 1894, already at the beginning of the twentieth century more than 30,000 were made, by the beginning of the First World War the figure had risen to 500,000 and, by the end of the Second World War, 2,260,000 were produced binoculars for the civilian and military market. Models were made starting from 4x11 mm to 12x40 mm, up to real giants such as 80 mm and 100 mm.
Thanks to studies conducted on the perception of light in low light situations, it was shown that the average dilation of the pupil in an adult is about 7 mm. For this reason, the 7x50 mm model was introduced in 1910 and remained on the market until 1917 with few changes to the materials used.
In 1926, following the post-war crisis of the First World War with the Treaty of Versailles which bankrupted many important German companies, Zeiss bought the "C.P. GOERZ" and founded the Zeiss Ikon in 1926.
In 1937, Zeiss had commercial contacts and factories spread over 29 countries around the world. From 1933 Zeiss acquired interest from the Nazi regime, which balanced production towards military instruments. It successfully produced binoculars with wide-angle optics for military use, pressure resistant optical systems for U-boats, periscope binoculars for targeting tanks. Furthermore Zeiss cameras were mounted on the V2 for remote sensing operations of the English coasts.
On November 1, 1935, Zeiss, in the person of Alexander Smakula, patented a process for the treatment of optical glasses with extraordinary results in terms of light transmission. Remained a military secret until 1939, it was adopted on binoculars to reduce ghost images and internal reflections. During the Second World War, there were numerous bombings against the Zeiss factories.
Jena was bombed several times by the Allies starting in 1944. Stuttgart was razed to the ground, although the Contessa-Nettel factory suffered little damage. The bombing of Dresden, in addition to devastating the city, also caused considerable damage to the Zeiss Ikon headquarters.
On April 13, 1945, American military forces entered Jena, surprising themselves as the bombings had not caused significant damage. The main planetarium was in ruins, while the factories remained operational.