This buttonholer was patented by Bauer in 1872 under Patent 129,309. It appears in all catalogs up to the 1941 one. The identical shears also appears on eBay with a Heinisch label. Knowing the factory, I would assume that this was actually made by someone else.
On the 1941 catalog page, and earlier catalogs, it appears with the Wiss cloud logo. No shears with this logo have ever appeared on eBay. Apparently this was edited onto the catalog photo in about 1912 and used thereafter. In no catalog was this ever marketed as being for leather, but for leather is what they are used for these days.
These frequently appear on eBay. Not all are complete. The one pictured here is probably the nicest one I have seen pass through. It promptly sold for its $45 buy-it-now price.
One passed through with two brass cylinders. The cylinders are different lengths. Another had a double leaf spring. And one had a coil spring. These variants are included as the last pictures on this page.
