Staffers at a photography shop in England carefully developed the negatives, which depict a ski trip in the Swiss Alps. Now, they’re searching for clues to help identify the people pictured

Ellen Wexler - Assistant Editor, Humanities

February 19, 2026 The camera, a Zeiss Ikon Baby Ikonta from the 1930s, and the newly developed images, which were likely taken in the 1950s Ian Scott

While browsing at a thrift store in England, an amateur photographer came across a vintage camera from the 1930s. He bought it for $13 and took it home. But when he examined his purchase, he was stunned to find a roll of undeveloped film still inside.

The man brought the camera to Salisbury Photo Center in Wiltshire, where experts carefully developed the negatives. The photos, which likely date to the 1950s, depict a group ski trip in the Swiss Alps. Now, the center’s staffers are searching for the snapshots’ owner.

“No leads on the photos yet,” Ian Scott, general manager of the photo center, tells Smithsonian magazine. “It has been on TV and the Sunday Express and [my] Instagram, which had 8,000 views in 24 hours, but sadly, no leads.”

A group photo of unidentified skiers in St. Moritz, Switzerland Ian Scott

The camera is a Zeiss Ikon Baby Ikonta, a small folding device produced in the 1930s that was meant to be carried around in one’s pocket. It uses 127 film, a format introduced by Kodak in 1912 that experienced a brief revival in the 1950s.

However, when left unprotected for decades, undeveloped film can become quite delicate. When Scott and his colleagues first examined the vintage camera, they knew they would need to proceed carefully.

Older film tends to suffer from base fogging, which causes problems like decreased contrast, Scott says. Out of an abundance of caution, he adds, the team submerged the newly discovered film in “a stand developer—[a] very weak developer—for 60 minutes.” Typically, developing film takes less than 15 minutes.

Ian Scott of Salisbury Photo Center holding the camera Ian Scott

“After the negatives have dried, I scan them to see positive images,” says Scott. “I am the first to see them.”

Without knowing how the film had been stored over the decades, Scott wasn’t sure what kind of results it would produce, as he explains to ITV News’ Lorna Shaddick. In similar cases, photos have sometimes come back blank.

But when the images appeared, Scott found himself looking at a crisp, well-preserved record of a ski trip in St. Moritz, Switzerland. Many of the photos show a group, perhaps a family, out on the slopes. One depicts a smiling woman in ice skates standing in front of the distinctive Badrutt’s Palace Hotel, which has been a staple of the region since 1896.

Quick facts: A famous guest at Badrutt’s Palace Hotel

• In 1926, Alfred Hitchcock and his wife, Alma, honeymooned at the luxurious hotel.
• Though the filmmaker vacationed in St. Moritz throughout his life, he wasn’t a skier, describing himself as “a devotee of winter sports from a distance.”

Scott has found several clues indicating that the photos were taken at the end of the 1950s, according to PetaPixel’s Pesala Bandara. This particular brand of 127 film—Verichrome Pan 127—was released in 1956. Additionally, the skiers are wearing numbered bibs with the words “Cow & Gate,” the name of a British baby formula company that sponsored the Cow & Gate Ski Trophy in the 1950s.

“These are amazing,” a company representative wrote in a comment on Scott’s Instagram. “What a glimpse into the past! It’s so special to see Cow & Gate featured in memories like this. Thanks for bringing these unseen images back to life.”

The skiers are wearing bibs sponsored by Cow & Gate, a British baby formula company. Ian Scott

Unfortunately, Cow & Gate didn’t have any additional information that could help identify the skiers. Staffers at the thrift store where the camera was purchased, Alabaré Wilton Emporium, didn’t have any leads, either. When people donate items, they “hand over a bag and they’re on their way,” Faye Tryhorn, a spokesperson for Alabaré, tells ITV News. “It’s lovely that we have these donations in, but quite often that means it’s difficult to trace back where they’ve come from.”

The staffers at Salisbury Photo Center are still hoping to find someone connected to the individuals pictured. Scott has been spreading the word, posting about the mystery on social media and speaking with local news outlets.

“There appears to be a great story behind these photographs, and it would be brilliant if someone could recognize a face amongst them,” he tells the Salisbury & Avon Gazette’s Andrea Glennon. “At the very least, it has been a privilege to have played a small part in preserving these moments from the past.”

An image of a woman on ice skates in front of Badrutt’s Palace Hotel Ian Scott

Scott has been involved in solving similar mysteries in the past. Last year, he helped Oliver Barnes, a 20-year-old antique camera enthusiast, process 70-year-old film found inside a 100-year-old Pocket Kodak. The photos show a throng of people gathered in the town of Chipping Sodbury in South Gloucestershire, England.

According to BBC News’ Harriet Robinson, history buffs found that this image was connected to the Good sisters, the world’s first surviving quadruplets born via C-section. The photo, which dates to 1948, pictures the crowd that had assembled to welcome the family home.

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