The Cupid is an all metal camera of roughly 'T' section. It was produced for a few years from 1922 and did not long survive the full merger of Houghton and Butcher. The Cupid was the first to use the 'double window' arrangement for doubling the number of exposures on a roll. Film with standard numbering on the backing paper was advanced so that each number appeared in each window successively.

Accessories included a clip-on brilliant finder and close-up lenses. The price was 18/6.

Variations

• Early versions have the provisional patent number 4312 on the front panel.
• Then the full number 194897 (for 4312).
• The third version has 194897 and 'Prov. Patent 24360'.
• Late models have have two patent numbers 194897 and 207637 (for 24360). The script 'Ensign Cupid' was strengthened and the maker's name added.

Different finishes exist - smooth (early, possibly only found on the first version) or rough crackle. A dark blue version was also produced.

Patents

Thefirst patent that relates to the Cupid was 193986 of 1921, that describes a curious camera intended for plates or cut-film. It comprised a metal guide plate for the plate holder attached to this was a thin housing for the lens, this gave a very pronounced 'T' section to the camera. The plate holder could slide within the guide plate and be fixed in different positions, the purpose of this was to allow several exposures on a single plate. When not in use the guide plate folded around the lens housing. The second related patent is 194897 of 1922 which describes the camera as produced for roll-film. The third patent covers shutter arrangements (207637). The Permutt sale contained a prototype of the first patent but having two lenses for stereo.

The idea for doubling the number of exposures on a roll of film came from W.H. Harvey's patent 13246 of 1914. He describes camera backs having two red windows or film with intermediate marks on the backing paper, masks for the focal plane and view-finder are also described.