Ur-Leica Manhole Cover - Wetzlar Germany Photography
Free worldwide shipping · Made to order & shipped from a lab near you · Arrives in ~5–8 days (US) · Damaged? Free replacement.
Cast in iron and set into the streets of Wetzlar, Germany, this commemorative manhole cover marks the spot where Oskar Barnack took the first photograph with his revolutionary Ur-Leica prototype in 1914 the camera that would change photography forever. The raised relief depicts the original Ur-Leica in elegant outline, its twin-spool film transport and fixed lens rendered in metal with the precision you would expect from the town that gave the world Leica. For any photographer, standing on this cover is standing on hallowed ground the birthplace of 35mm photography and the beginning of a lineage that runs from Cartier-Bresson to every street photographer working today. It is the kind of detail most visitors walk right over, which makes finding it and photographing it all the more satisfying.
Materials
- Fine Art Poster — Giclée print on 200 gsm (80 lb) FSC-certified paper, 12-colour pigment process, smooth matte finish.
- Museum-Quality Matte — 250 gsm (100 lb) uncoated off-white archival paper. Heavier stock and a warmer tone than the Fine Art Poster.
- Canvas — Printed canvas stretched over an FSC-certified slim wood frame. Ready to hang, no glazing.
- Fine Art Framed — White, Wood, Dark Wood — The Fine Art Poster mounted behind shatterproof plexiglass in a 12 × 22 mm solid wood frame. Ready to hang.
- Fine Art Framed — Black — The same print behind shatterproof plexiglass in a 10 × 22 mm aluminium frame. Ready to hang.
Sizes
- 12x18" (30 × 45 cm)
- 16x24" (40 × 60 cm)
- 24x36" (60 × 90 cm)
Printed to order and shipped from the production centre nearest you. Every size is offered at the photograph’s native 3:2 proportions, so the full frame is printed edge to edge with nothing cropped away.
Sizes & materials
Materials
- Fine Art Poster — premium matte poster stock, archival pigment inks.
- Museum-Quality Matte — heavyweight matte fine-art paper, rich detail, no glare.
- Canvas — gallery-wrapped on a wooden stretcher, ready to hang.
- Framed Poster — print set in a wood frame; choose white, natural, dark wood, or black.
Size guide (approx.)
- 8×10 in — 20×25 cm
- 11×14 in — 28×36 cm
- 16×20 in — 41×51 cm
- 18×24 in — 46×61 cm
- 24×36 in — 61×91 cm
Made to order — please choose your size carefully, as made-to-order prints can't be returned for a wrong-size choice.
Shipping & returns
Shipping — Each print is produced on demand at the partner lab nearest you (US, UK, mainland Europe, and 10+ countries), so it travels the shortest distance. Production 1–4 business days; delivery roughly 3–6 days in the US, UK & EU and 5–10 days rest of world, tracked. EU orders are produced within the EU, so no import duties apply.
Returns — Arrives damaged, defective, or not what you ordered? Email ingo@elfering.com within 30 days with photos and we'll send a free replacement — or a full refund if we can't replace it. Because every piece is made to order, we don't accept change-of-mind returns.
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