Forgotten Victorian camera found in Oxfordshire loft sells for £18,000 for wildlife conservation

A forgotten box of photography equipment stored in an Oxfordshire loft for nearly 30 years has revealed a very rare Victorian camera that sold at auction for £18,000. The collection was first put away in 1996 by a homeowner who had inherited his father's belongings. Nearly 30 years later, during a routine house clearance, he found a late 19th-century folding camera made of mahogany and brass. It was tucked inside a leather case. According to cataloguing details and sales records released by Churchill Auctions, the historic camera attracted strong competition from international collectors before selling for a hammer price of £18,000. After the sale, the seller announced that a large part of the auction proceeds would go directly to UK wildlife conservation charities. The donation is in memory of his late father, who loved nature and was a keen amateur photographer.Decades of storage in a village homeThe camera equipment was first stored away in 1996, when the owner moved into his family home in Oxfordshire. The wooden crate was left untouched in an insulated loft for almost 30 years, surrounded by personal belongings, old books, and household items. When the homeowner decided to cle...