The Coquet Slides

In 2014, a couple of locals spotted a set of 46 lantern slides of the Upper Coquet Valley that appeared on eBay. Following an initiative by Duncan Glen on Facebook, the people listed below contributed towards a fund to buy these. Thanks to them the slides were returned to Rothbury and were cleaned, scanned and retouched by Mike Todd.

Subjects range from landscapes to individuals, but neither the photographer nor the dates are known, but they are believed to have been taken in the 1920s. The condition of the slides vary, with dirt and hairs trapped between the glass plates and imaged on the actual photo. It was considered inappropriate to dismantle the slides to clean them fully, so only the outside glass surfaces were cleaned and the remaining dirt has been removed on the computer.

One surprise was to find two slides shot in colour (slides 45 & 46 in the gallery). These were shot using an early colour system, but I'm still researching to find out which it was - possibly either the Ilford Dufaycolor or the German Agfa system.

For funding the purchase of the slides, thanks go to Bill Armstrong, Margaret Hedley, Michael Hodgson, Allan Murray, Ken Murray, Katie Scott, Michael Scott, Jim Smith, Mike Todd, Peter Tully, Freda Walker, Helen Walklett, Daf Wynne and, of course, Duncan himself