Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 180 mm f2.8

If it says "Jena" it was manufactured in what was, at one time, East Germany. Carl Zeiss was located in Jena, near Dresden. Prior to 1945, Zeiss lenses were labelled Jena. At the end of WWII, a group of employees started a Carl Zeiss in Stuttgart. Following legal challenges over the name "Carl Zeiss" in the U.S., both firms were allowed use of the name but the East German product had to be labelled "Jena." Toward the very end, Carl Zeiss Jena subcontracted some lens manufacturing to some Japanese firms but as far as I know the 180mm was never one of them.

Thanks a lot Prof. K.
Do you know what the difference between the zebra and the all-black version? Is one better than the other?

This is one of the all-time classics. Wonderful, even wide open. Only problem is that the aperture mechanism is often a little flaky, it's easy to fix, but sometimes doesn't stay fixed. You'll find out that is is a little , well, big.

I believe the black paint and "zebra" lenses from Jena are all the same [pre-war] optical design. However, the "zebra" version indicates a later manufacturing date, and possibly lower quality control. As an aside, some years ago I owned the autofocus Nikon 180mm f2.8 ED-IF. I don't think it will autofocus on your D60 - but it was stunningly sharp! If you can find the first version,(when Nikon made no attempt to hide the polycarbonate with a "crinkle" finish, and if you don't mind the loose focus ring) these can sometimes be obtained for a very good price.

how do the east german lenses compare with their west german varieties?

I finally ended up buying one of these "beautiful beasts".....I got it for about $170 shipped (from Hungary), which I think is a decent price, given what I have read (any thoughts on that?)
Anyways, to answer Starvy's question, check Rick Denney's article here:
(link)
Rick Denney has some wonderful information comparing bokeh from different lenses on his website....which is what ultimately coaxed me into shelling out the $170.
I am a very coarse amateur.......so I just believe in what I read!

how do the east german lenses compare with their west german varieties?

Comments on "quality control" are repeated in a sort of viral way, often, I suspect by people who have not used many of the Zeiss Jena or other East German lenses. Like modern Canon or Nikon lenses, there are variations from one lens to another. In general terms, I have never got a really bad East German lens in optical quality , although a few of the cheapies from the low point from Meyer, particularly, have some mechanical problems with the automatic aperture mechanism. These were design flaws, not quality control issues, however.
Some of the triplets were, well, pictorial rather than copy lenses, shall we say, but my experience with lenses on contemporary West German cameras, does not lead me to see them as any better than the Ossies, and perhaps sometimes not so good as.
Another bunch of pre-war German lenses were produced up to the present day in the former Soviet Union. These also--surprisingly, given the nature of socialist production quotas, etc. -- are much better than you would think. My Jupiters are very nice clones of the Sonnars that they copy, for example. I don't think that you'd do any better to buy the Contax pre-war examples for much more money.

Here is a reasonably good sample of the lense in 35mm format: http://www.pbase.com/image/92343603

And a bit of bokeh testing: http://www.rickdenney.com/bokeh_test.htm