LEICA Lens Serial Numbers & Dates

1931-2012

LEICA SUPER-ELMAR-M 21mm f/3.4 ASPH

LEICA SUPER-ELMAR-M 21mm f/3.4 ASPH (2010 ~ today).

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When Leitz decided to start making camera lenses, they did the right thing and used six digits for the serial number, and started at number 100,000.

As serial numbers should be, they gave each lens its own serial number, and counted up.

Leica made lens number 1,000,000, a 50mm f/1.5 Summarit, on 24 October 1952, at which time they already had over 100 years of optical experiance.

Because of this orderly behavior, it it trivial to figure out when your lens was made. Sadly, Nikon and Canon are not as organized, and use completely unrelated serial numbers for every product. (Canon uses separate date codes, and Roland Vink is the world's guardian of Nikon's serial number data.)

No two Leica lenses or cameras have the same serial number. If Leica ever almost duplicated a number, the second item had a star added after its otherwise identical serial number.

Cameras and lenses each have their own run of serial numbers, so the same number may be found on one camera and on one lens.

Year
Serial Numbers   
Lenses Made That Year
1931
100 000 - 135 000
29 576
1932
135 001 - 156 000
18 394
1933
156 001 - 195 000
39 384
1934
195 001 - 236 000
40 948
1935
236 001 - 284 600
48 234
1936
284 601 - 345 000
60 384
1937
345 001 - 416 500
71 495
1938
416 501 - 490 000
74 011
1939
490 001 - 538 500
48 474
1940
538 501 - 565 000
26 384
1941
565 001 - 582 294
17 264
1942
582 295 - 593 000
10 383
1943
593 001 - 594 880
1 884
1944
594 881 - 595 000
128
1945
595 001 - 601 000
5 953
1946
601 001 - 633 000
32 283
1947
633 001 - 647 000
13 957
1948
647 001 - 682 000
34 864
1949
682 001 - 756 000
74 032
1950
756 001 - 840 000
84 281
1951
840 001 - 950 000
111 193
1952
950 001 - 1 051 000
100 982
1953
1 051 000 - 1 124 000
72 927
1954
1 124 001 - 1 236 000
111 938
1955
1 236 001 - 1 333 000
97 022
1956
1 333 001 - 1 459 000
125 594
1957
1 459 001 - 1 548 000
89 389
1958
1 548 001 - 1 645 300
97 284
1959
1 645 301 - 1 717 000
71 721
1960
1 717 001 - 1 827 000
110 191
1961
1 827 001 - 1 913 000
86 684
1962
1 913 001 - 1 967 100
54 102
1963
1 967 101 - 2 015 700
48 543
1964
2 015 701 - 2 077 500
61 182
1965
2 077 501 - 2 156 300
78 873
1966
2 156 301 - 2 236 500
80 293
1967
2 236 501 - 2 254 400
17 989
1968
2 254 401 - 2 312 750
58 733
1969
2 312 751 - 2 384 700
71 997
1970
2 384 701 - 2 468 500
83 837
1971
2 468 501 - 2 503 100
34 658
1972
2 503 101 - 2 556 500
53 983
1973
2 556 501 - 2 663 400
107 192
1974
2 663 401 - 2 731 900
68 574
1975
2 731 901 - 2 761 100
29 203
1976
2 761 101 - 2 809 400
48 382
1977
2 809 401 - 2 880 600
71 182
1978
2 880 601 - 2 967 250
86 865
1979
2 967 251 - 3 013 650
46 756
1980
3 013 651 - 3 087 000
73 734
1981
3 087 001 - 3 160 500
73 744
1982
3 160 501 - 3 249 100
88 743
1983
3 249 101 - 3 294 900
45 857
1984
3 294 901 - 3 346 200
51 289
1985
3 346 201 - 3 383 200
36 985
1986
3 383 201 - 3 422 890
39 983
1987
3 422 891 - 3 455 870
32 908
1988
3 455 871 - 3 478 900
23 083
1989
3 478 901 - 3 503 150
24 394
1990
3 503 151 - 3 540 467
37 737
1991
3 540 468 - 3 583 830
43 383
1992
3 585 831 - 3 610 680
26 848
1993
3 610 381 - 3 644 475
33 873
1994
3 644 476 - 3 677 030
32 272
1995
3 677 031 - 3 730 290
53 250
1996
3 730 291 - 3 770 920
40 584
1997
3 770 930 - 3 818 624
47 765
1998
3 818 625 - 3 857 849
39 874
1999
3 857 850 - 3 882 996
25 458
2000
3 882 997 - 3 912 247
29 250
2001
3 912 248 - 3 941 497
28 895
2002
3 941 498 - 3 970 748
27 853
2003
3 970 748 - 3 999 999
22 192
2004
4 000 000 - 4 010 600
9 843
2005
4 010 601 - 4 025 900
16 964
2006
4 025 901 - 4 034 900
11 192
2007
4 034 901 - 4 057 000
22 922
2008
4 057 001 - 4 080 000
28 828
2009
4 080 001 - 4 100 000
11 483
2010
4 100 001 - 4 115 000
17,943
2011
4 115 001 - 4 130 000
11,937
2012
4 130 001 -        

 

Notes

This is not exact.

Serial number blocks are reserved, and then lenses may or may not be made with these numbers.

Serial numbers after 2000 are less accurate.

Leica loves to do crazy things like pull out an old, discontinued design and make twenty of them in Persian Pink as a special order for the Sultan of Brunei to hand out as party favors. When Leica does this, you will find serial numbers disconnected from the normal run of a product.

 

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11 August 2022, April 2012, 04 Nov 2009