Latvia 1938 – Spy Camera – Minox film – Very Rare.
The Minox camera was invented by Latvian German named Walter Zapp in 1936 but gained its immense popularity when James Bond (George Lazenby) used a Minox A IIIs in “On Her Majesty’s Service” in 1969.
The first “Riga” copies of the Minox are distinguished by a stainless steel hull, which will be later replaced by aluminum. The Minox was the preferred camera for intelligence agencies and spies around the world until the 1960s for its small size and macro focusing ability. There is a 1942 public record showing 25 Minox cameras purchased by the US Office of Strategic Services.
It was so expensive that it was considered a luxury gadget item and remained state-of-the-art hi-tech well into the 1980s.
