Keith Melton and his spy museum

Kit Melton and his museum of spy equipment

Shelkov Vadim Antoninovich

In any area of ​​human activity, sooner or later there comes a moment when the sum of accumulated knowledge and the total volume of its material embodiment requires the creation of a corresponding museum.

And there are a great many museums on earth, and the most diverse ones: in their focus, in the form of presentation of the material, and finally, in the size of both the exposition itself and the building.

The time has come for our magazine, in full accordance with its subject matter, to pay some attention to technical museums, or rather, polytechnic museums.

Here the range is also unusually wide: from the “classical Moscow Polytechnic to the modernist Evoluon, a private museum owned by the Dutch company Philips.

Its building resembles a flying saucer that has landed at the entrance to the city of Eindhoven, where the headquarters of this giant corporation is located.

For obvious reasons, our interest is focused on specific museums, namely museums of special equipment.”

As far as we know, every major intelligence agency that respects itself has them.

Surely many of our readers have been lucky enough to visit the museums of the border troops, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the FSB, and even the SVR.

Similar exhibits are also in the CIA, FBI, and NSA. But all of them, as a rule, are departmental, closed to ordinary visitors: only for the “initiated”: for their own and those “who can”.

But it turns out that in the south of the United States, in the state of Florida, there is an amazing private museum, as if specially created for us to tell you about it: “Historical Espionage Equipment Museum” by Keith Melton (H. Keith Melton, Historical Espionage Equipment, Jupiter, Florida, USA).

Its creator and keeper is Keith Melton, an American businessman, owner of a whole chain of fast food restaurants in the southern United States.

But besides this, he has a very original hobby: over many years, he has amassed an unrivaled collection of spy equipment and devices, literary sources and documents dedicated to famous intelligence officers and famous spy operations.

Over time, his collection turned into a real museum, where, along with a miniature spy camera that fits in a matchbox, a one-man submarine for conducting special operations in enemy coastal waters is presented.

A graduate of the US Naval Academy, Keith Melton served his time and after retiring, became a military historian and expert in the field of special technical means used by intelligence agencies of various countries.

He has provided significant assistance to authors of many historical and reference publications, providing exhibits from his museum as a visual illustration of such an unusual type of activity as intelligence.

Currently, he is a recognized authority in the field of the history of «spy technology.»

In 1991, Keith Melton was a consultant for the famous television series «Spies,» twenty-six episodes of which were shown in Russia on the NTV channel in April of this year.

In 1997, the famous educational Discovery Channel released another series, «War of Spies,» for which Keith Melton was also a consultant.

He is a member of the Board of Advisors of the National Intelligence Historical Museum in Washington, a consultant to the CIA, the Department of Defense, and the Cryptographic Museum of the National Security Agency of the United States on the history of technical intelligence, and an active participant in many councils related to the history of intelligence to one degree or another.

Finally, Keith Melton is the author of four fascinating, richly illustrated books on the history of technical intelligence, highly acclaimed by specialists from different countries:

1. CIA Special Weapons and Equipment
2. OSS Special Weapons and Equipment* Espionage Equipment of World War II
3. The Secret War — SOE** and OSS Weapons and Equipment
4. The Ultimate Spy Book ***

Note:

* OSS — Office of Strategic Services, the predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency.
** SOE — British Special Operations Executive.
*** The term “Ultimate” can be translated as the last. However, a more comprehensive translation would more accurately reflect the author’s idea: final or exhaustive at the time of review.

In the preface to the latest book, former CIA Director William Colby particularly noted its value and called Keith Melton one of the most outstanding collectors of technical intelligence tools.

He also expressed deep gratitude to the author for the way he presented the intelligence profession to the general public in a dignified and comprehensive manner.

Another former CIA chief, Richard Helms, once wrote in the preface to K. Melton's third book:

With the advent of new technologies, old devices fall into disuse and are often consigned to oblivion. We are indebted to Keith Melton, essentially a private individual, for the time he spent searching for and acquiring these works of engineering art, which are now part of his remarkable private collection.

Thanks to Mr. Melton's efforts, these usually amazing and often unique devices and gadgets, once strictly classified, are now widely presented on the pages of his books with detailed descriptions and illustrations.

The proposed edition (meaning the 3rd book) is the result of Keith Melton's persistent 17-year work to save from disappearance or oblivion the ingenious technical devices to which so many intelligence officers entrusted their fate.

For this he deserves great gratitude from people and, in particular, from those who have ever worked with these devices.

Many of our specialists, veterans of Russian (read: Soviet) foreign intelligence, are of the same opinion: Keith Melton, with his characteristic persistence, is doing a very important job: saving from oblivion and destruction the material evidence of such a controversial and interesting area of ​​human activity as intelligence. After all, many of the exhibits in his remarkable museum have accumulated the talent of outstanding scientists and engineers of their time. Often, the originality of ideas and mastery of execution can compete with the ingenious toys of the legendary Mr. Q, a specialist in “operational technology” who equipped James Bond himself!

During one of his visits to Moscow, Mr. Melton responded to our request and kindly allowed us to acquaint the readers of our magazine with a unique view of spy technology” based on the materials of the above-mentioned books and his fascinating stories about the exhibits of this amazing museum.

With this issue, our magazine begins a series of articles about special technical means, described by Keith Melton.

And the first of them we dedicate to his favorite brainchild — spy cameras and various accessories for them.

Keith Melton. The «last» book about espionage (Ultimate Spy Book)

Rulers and military leaders of all times needed information about the strengths and weaknesses of their enemies, about the intentions of their opponents or rivals.

For this reason, intelligence (or espionage, if you prefer) has a history as long as civilization itself.

As early as five centuries BC, the ancient Chinese strategist Sun Tsu wrote in his classic book, The Art of War, about the great importance of intelligence and intelligence networks in the enemy's camp.

Even the Bible contains over a hundred references to spies and intelligence gathering.

In the 16th and 17th centuries, the rulers of European monarchies literally became mired in intrigue in their struggle to preserve and strengthen their power.

The institution of foreign embassies was formed, which were required not only to perform official representative functions, but also to combine them with espionage and subversive activities.

The intelligence services created at that time were used with great effectiveness by such outstanding politicians as Cardinal Richelieu in France (1585-1642) and Sir Francis Wolsingham in England (1537-1590)

Despite constant technological progress, the “technology” of espionage has essentially changed little since the Renaissance: to succeed, an agent must first gain access to secret information, then steal or copy it.

After that, he must escape “to freedom” unnoticed, establish contact with his “curator” and hand over the obtained materials to him.

The political, ideological and cultural changes that were taking place in Europe at that time stimulated the development of “intelligence gathering technology.”

It is interesting that the basic principles of the so-called polyalphabetic ciphers, which developed during the 15th century, continued to be used even at the beginning of the 20th century.

Since then, technical means and methods of espionage have reached such perfection that old intelligence officers could not even dream of.

A variety of ingenious devices and gadgets were created: from listening devices and devices for covert photography, to communications and encryption equipment, containers, hiding places, master keys and even special weapons.

This entire arsenal can be easily hidden or disguised, thereby ensuring the safety of the intelligence officer. Moreover, even after being in a hiding place for several years, it remains fully functional.

And since in the second half of the 20th century, career intelligence officers and their agents have to operate in extremely difficult conditions, unique products are sometimes specially developed for them.

Since its invention in the mid-19th century, photography has played an important role in the intelligence process.

And its importance has grown steadily. Spies have used cameras to photograph people and military installations, secret documents and blueprints, anything of interest to intelligence.

In this case, success can only be achieved if the shooting is done covertly, unnoticed by others. For these purposes, small-sized cameras were needed that could be easily camouflaged and, nevertheless, provided high-quality photographs.

In their activities, intelligence services used three main types of cameras, each of which corresponded to the solution of a specific task:

• miniature cameras
devices for covert photography, camouflaged in household items
devices for shooting documents

Miniature cameras.

Miniature cameras have always been widely used by intelligence services.

Small enough to fit in the palm of your hand, miniature cameras could be adapted to a wide variety of tasks.

In addition to general photography*, most of them could be used for covert surveillance and document reproduction.

To facilitate camouflage, some of them even lacked a viewfinder, and aiming at the object was done instinctively, thanks to the skill of the operator.

Note:

* General photography here means photographing natural objects: people and individual objects, landscapes, various buildings and other structures, vehicles, etc., everything that is usually photographed by professionals and amateurs without the use of special equipment.

The most famous among miniature cameras and the most successful in its practical application is undoubtedly the Minox.

And, although it was not originally intended for espionage, the perfection of its design, excellent optics, and small dimensions made the Minox exceptionally suitable for these purposes.

The numerous accessories issued for it allowed it to be used both for copying documents (reproductions) and for object photography in combination with various covers (camouflage).

Another example of commercially produced miniature cameras were: the Japanese Echo-8 in a lighter case and the camera of the outstanding designer R. Steineck in the form of a wristwatch. They were actively used by Western intelligence services during the Cold War.

But even during the Second World War, under pressure of circumstances, as well as to solve special tasks, the intelligence services of many countries developed special miniature cameras of their own design, for example, in France and the USA cameras “in a matchbox” were created.

Camouflaged cameras.

Often, agents and intelligence officers need cameras that would allow them to take pictures of objects of their interest without being noticed by others.

Such devices can be hidden in various household items, such as handbags.

They can also be placed on the spy's body, and the lens is hidden behind an imitation button or tie clip. In this case, the shutter is released from the pocket of the outerwear using a remote control.

Examples of such cameras, widely used by intelligence agencies, are the Soviet F21 and the West German Robot.

Both devices were based on pre-war German designs and used a spring motor to drive the mechanism. Numerous covers were created by both the intelligence services themselves and the manufacturer of the Robot device.

Cameras for photographing documents.

Devices for reproducing documents can be singled out as a separate class.

Some of them were custom-made to special orders, others were produced by the photographic industry and were equipped with various accessories.

When necessary, a regular camera was used to photograph documents, but to achieve acceptable results, appropriate knowledge and skills in photography were required.

Most spies used special sets of accessories for reproducing documents, placed in inconspicuous boxes or suitcases.

Usually, these devices were designed for use by people who did not have serious photographic training.

At one time, KGB specialists created such a small camera for photographing documents that its dimensions were comparable to a film cassette from a Minox camera.

It is clear that it could easily be carried unnoticed into a guarded facility. Later, an original camera was created there, which was used like a brush to draw on a document and thus reproduce it.

Camouflage cameras.

As a rule, spies used camouflaged, covertly installed in various objects, devices for covert photography.

Such a device could be hidden under the clothes of a spy or disguised as some household item.

In addition to devices that had only one cover, there were cameras that allowed camouflage in a variety of household items. Thus, for the Tessina, Robot and F 21 devices there were whole sets of covers.

Conventional cameras can also be used for covert photography, but in combination with special devices that mask the pupil of the lens. An example of such a cover is a car license plate, some elements of which are made translucent — covered with a special glass plate.

Modified lens cover of the Leica camera

The word «Leica» was cut into the regular lens cap. This allowed you to photograph objects without removing it from the lens, and those around you had the impression that the camera was not being used.

The Leica camera	Lens cap with a slot for covert photography

Tessina* camera in a cigarette pack.

The Swiss Tessina camera, popular with intelligence agencies around the world, is perhaps the smallest 35 mm camera with a film rewind motor.

It fits in a standard cigarette pack. Cigarettes, the most common in a given country and in the area where the photography is supposed to take place, are usually used as cover.

A special metal frame (a kind of chassis) ensures the correct position of the lens relative to the grid of microscopic holes in the side wall of the pack.

Shooting is done through it. The shutter is released by pressing in a certain place on the side wall of the pack, and up to 10 shots can be taken, after which the spring motor will need to be wound.

Note:

* The Tessina camera was designed by the same Rudolf Steineck who created a camera in a wristwatch back in the late 1940s. Like Swiss watches, the Tessina was highly accurate and reliable, as evidenced by the manufacturer's 5-year warranty.

According to tests conducted by the authoritative American magazine Popular Photography, the miniature Tessina exceeded all expected results for cameras of this class.

It is not surprising that in 1990, a camera designed more than 30 years ago was sold by pre-order for 500 US dollars with a delivery period of 9 months!

Tessina camera camouflaged in a book.

The body of the Tessina camera is small enough to be hidden inside a book of average thickness, by cutting out a corresponding niche in the pages with text. Shooting was done through a hole made in the edge of the book. The shutter was released by pressing on the side wall of the binding.

Technical characteristics of the Tessina camera

“Tochka-58” — a camera in a tie

This device, created by the KGB, was placed on the operator’s body and took photographs through a special tie pin. The set included two identical pins: one of them was used for shooting, and the second was used everyday. The employee used the second as an ordinary pin, so that those around him would get used to its appearance. When it was necessary to take covert photographs, he put on the camera, with the lens masked by the first pin. The device was powered by a spring motor and was almost silent.

Technical characteristics of the Tochka-58” device

Robot camera

The Robot camera, first introduced in 1934, was powered by a spring motor and allowed for sequential shooting without having to cock the shutter or wind the film after each shot.

The device was used during World War II by German pilots to record the results of bombing, as well as by German intelligence officers. Due to this feature and the ability to camouflage itself in various household items, the Robot was used by the intelligence services of both the Communist bloc and Western countries during the early years of the Cold War.

Technical specifications of the Robot

Robot Star 50 Camera

The Robot Star 50 is the latest mechanically powered camera based on the Robot cameras of the Second World War era. It can take up to 50 shots, and its short-focus lens with a large depth of field ensures sharp photos.

Handbag cover

The manufacturers of the Robot were well acquainted with the forms and methods of using these cameras by special services and, in turn, developed equipment kits with the ability to camouflage it in a variety of objects.

The kit shown in the photo allowed the Robot Star 50 camera to be placed in a hand bag. Photographing was carried out through an element of the fittings — a miniature decorative grille. The manufacturer supplied a wide range of such covers.

Briefcase for covert photography

A briefcase with a disguised Robot camera was used by American intelligence in the 50s and 60s to conduct covert photography.

The employee held the briefcase under his arm and took pictures at a right angle to the direction of the intended view/movement.

Since the scout could not use the viewfinder, aiming and framing were done instinctively, thanks to the operator's skill acquired through training. The employee had to learn to position the briefcase in the correct way to photograph the object of interest. The shutter was released using a lever, by pressing on the side of the briefcase.

Camera in a waist belt

The waist belt cover allowed the Robot to take photographs through holes in a false button. It was intended for covert photography of people. The kit included a set of spare buttons for replacing them on the operator's clothing in accordance with the one through which the photography was carried out.

F21 — a device for hidden photography

The lightweight, compact F21 camera was developed by KGB specialists based on the German “Robot” device of 1948.

The F21 was used for covert photography and allowed several consecutive shots to be taken in a short period of time using a spring-loaded rewind and shutter cocking motor. A large number of covers were created for it, which allowed it to be used in a variety of situations. After the end of the Cold War, a commercial version of the F21 camera appeared under the name «Zenit» MF-1.

F21 Camera and Accessories

The F21 camera, with its lenses, accessories and covers, forms a sophisticated system for covert photography. Its small size combined with low noise levels make it completely invisible. With no viewfinder, aiming at the subject is instinctive.

Technical specifications of the F21 camera

Camouflage of the F21 device in a jacket pocket.

The jacket shown in the photograph is one of the many variants of covers for the F21 camera used by the Soviet secret services.

The front panel had a false button that covered the lens. The camera was placed in a secret pocket, and the false button was threaded through a special hole in the jacket brim.

When the trigger of the remote control, located in another pocket, was pressed, a small hole opened in the center of the false button, through which photography was performed.

A leather case cover for a regular camera

The scout put this cover on his neck and pretended not to use the camera. But inside was an F21 camera mounted on the side of the case, allowing for photography at a right angle to its front side.

When a button was pressed, a special, invisible curtain opened and the camera was taken.

A cover in the form of an umbrella

The small size of the F21 camera allowed photography through a small hole in the camouflage without attracting the attention of others. Even a folding umbrella could be used for this. The camera was installed in a specially shaped wooden stock, which was placed inside the umbrella. Filming was done through a small hole in the fabric cover of the umbrella. The operator was able to take photos by holding the umbrella in his hand and pressing the shutter button through the fabric of the cover.

Miniature cameras

Miniature cameras include small-sized cameras that fit easily in a pocket and use narrow film, most often 9.5 and 16 mm wide.

They are very convenient for reconnaissance photography and are often built-in (mounted) into various household items, which makes them completely invisible to others.

In some cases, such cameras lack some of the parts and components that are common in household cameras, such as a viewfinder.

This allows for more successful camouflage, users require serious training in working with such devices, since filming is done secretly, on the sly and, often, in very difficult, as professionals say, “operational” conditions.

For particularly important cases, intelligence services have miniature cameras at their disposal, manufactured to their order. Otherwise, special or even household cameras available on the market, but suitable for reconnaissance tasks, are used.

Camera in a wristwatch

The famous camera by German designer Rudolf Steineck — Steineck ABC, which appeared in 1949, resembled a wristwatch in size and shape (dimensions 50 x 35 mm, the lens frame protrudes above the wrist by 20 mm). It allowed you to take 6 pictures on a piece of film cut in the form of a disk with a diameter of 24 mm. When shooting, the spy only had to pretend to check the time.

A camera in the form of a lighter

The ECHO-8 camera in the form of a lighter was developed in Japan in 1951. At that time, it was the smallest camera on the market.

It was located inside a working (!) lighter.

This type of cover was ideal for secret photography in public places and companies, where the use of a lighter would not arouse any suspicion from others. To take a photo, you had to open the lid and, lighting a cigarette, point the camera at the object and take a photo.

Technical characteristics of the ECHO-8 camera

Soviet Kyiv-30 camera in a pack of cigarettes

The photograph shows a miniature 16 mm Soviet camera “Kyiv-30” (Kyiv-Vega), installed in a metal case imitating a cigarette pack. The shutter was cocked and the film was rewound using one of the fake cigarettes. For greater credibility, one real cigarette could be placed in the camouflage case.

Technical characteristics of the “Kyiv-30” camera

A device for covert photography

The KGB used the secret photography device from the 1950s to the 1970s. It fit in a fist and was aimed at an object instinctively.

It could also be placed on the operator's body using special straps and allowed shooting through holes in a fake brooch or button. The shutter was released and the film was rewinded by pressing a special lever with the thumb.

Pin Hole Camera

This miniature camera has apparently been used by the KGB since 1980. It uses an optical design used by photographers* as early as the 19th century: the image is formed using a very small hole without the use of lenses (Pin Hole optics).

The camera consists of four compartments, each with its own small hole. Pin Hole optics are characterized by a very large depth of field, allowing you to photograph both close and distant objects without additional focusing.

Note:

* In fairness, it should be noted that this optical effect has been known to people since the times of ancient Greece and many great artists of the past, including Brunelleschi, da Vinci, Durer and Raphael used a “camera obscura” — a room or a large box with a small hole in one of the walls to study the laws of perspective.

Camera in a “matchbox” (Kodak X)

During World War II, on assignment from the American intelligence service OSS, the Kodak company developed a camera in a “matchbox” as an alternative to the famous spy camera Minox, which was produced in Riga from 1938 to 1941.

The black metal case of the camera resembled a regular matchbox in shape and size. For its time, the camera was extremely miniature, distinguished by its precision and suitability for both general and documentary photography.

You could use one hand when working: the camera fit easily in your fist.

It allowed you to use an unlimited number of covers.

The most popular of these were boxes of Swedish and Japanese matches.

Often the camera was supplied in its pure form, when the camouflage was determined directly by the operator.

Technical characteristics of the Kodak X camera

* Note:

The camera was supplied with 30 meters of black-and-white non-perforated Kodak Plus X film and 30 meters of Super XX film of 16 mm width.

In principle, any 16 mm perforated and non-perforated film of suitable sensitivity could be used, which was wound onto the feed spool of the camera. The film was loaded directly into the camera in complete darkness without the use of cassettes.

A special tripod for documentary film was supplied to order, and later the device was supplemented with a portable film development kit.

Minox Camera

The miniature Minox camera, presented in various models, was the most common spy device in the world for many years.

The inventor of Minox, Latvian engineer of German origin Walter Zapp (1905), was fascinated by the task of creating a miniature camera that could easily fit in the hand, but, nevertheless, be capable of taking high-quality instant” photographs.

And, although V. Zapp conceived Minox as a general-purpose device, this “little one”, the first commercial version* of which appeared in 1938, soon became in great demand among spies around the world. By 1939, more than 17 thousand of these devices had been sold worldwide.

With its many accessories, the Minox could be easily adapted to a wide range of intelligence gathering tasks.

Until the end of the Cold War in the early 1990s, the Minox remained one of the most widely used cameras by the intelligence services, and was almost ideal for document photography.

* Note:

By 1934, he had succeeded in designing a miniature mechanism that met these high requirements. In 1938, the first serial Minox was manufactured in Riga.

It used a 9.5 mm wide film, four times narrower than the usual 35 mm film for the popular German Leica and Contax cameras of the time.

The capacity of the cassettes at that time was 50 frames. It should be noted that the choice of this format of film is quite understandable: in the 20-30s it was quite common and was used in amateur film cameras.

After the outbreak of World War II, British intelligence bought up Minox cameras all over Great Britain, wherever possible, and their American colleagues, without hesitation, offered $400 for them in 1942 (and this was with the price of the Riga-Minox camera in 1939 being $79! Truly “the hunt is worse than bondage”).

The insufficient supply of Minox cameras for the needs of American intelligence during World War II prompted the Kodak company to produce the Kodak X model, the so-called Match Box Camera.

But this was not the only concern that the Riga Minox caused.

It turns out that its shiny stainless steel body was a significant “giveaway” when photographing documents. And the quality of the “Minostigmat” lens on the first Minox models, frankly speaking, left much to be desired.

Here, perhaps, one interesting remark should be made: it is known that during the Second World War, German agents in Ankara used not the Minox, but the classic Leica camera of 1937 with a screw-on lens mount M39 — to photograph documents in the British embassy.

That is why in 1948, when the production of the Minox in an aluminum case was resumed in the FRG, a new lens with high resolution was installed on it, which made it possible to significantly improve the detail of the negatives obtained on modern high-quality films.

Model “B” was produced from 1958 to 1972 and was the most “popular” among spies around the world.

It was the first to use a built-in exposure meter, and since it did not require power sources for its operation, the device could remain in storage for a long time and, nevertheless, always be ready for work.

* Note:

Here I would not agree with Mr. K. Melton. The fact is that exposure meters without power sources (“without batteries”) use selenium photocells, the parameters of which change significantly over time and the exposure meter begins to “lie shamelessly”.

Minox Film Developing Kit in the Light

Using a special Minox tank, spies could develop their exposed films in daylight.

The tank was no larger than a regular beer can and held a small amount of solutions that were poured through a light-tight funnel.

The first Minox enlargers only allowed for small enlargements of its miniature negatives.

After World War II, improved devices appeared that allowed for much greater enlargements of new high-resolution negative films.

Technical characteristics of the Minox camera

Document copying machines

In many cases, the spy has only a few minutes to copy important documentary material.

He can steal it and return it before it is discovered, or he can gain access to it and copy it during the short time he is alone.

General purpose cameras can be used for documentary photography, but a certain amount of skill and diligence is required to obtain satisfactory results.

Specialists from intelligence services have developed special portable copying machines that are easy to use, reliable, and do not require significant time to copy documents.

For security reasons, cameras for documentary photography can be made extremely small or camouflaged, imitating some household item.

A great example of the latter is a special camera, created at one time in the KGB, disguised in an ordinary notebook, and working on the rolling method” on the copied page.

Copying unit S-64 “Yolka”

This device was developed by KGB specialists and worked from an alternating current network with different voltages and even from a 12-volt car electrical system. Easy to use, it ensured the production of fairly good negatives.

Thanks to its hinged design, the device folded easily and took up little space when not in use, fitting entirely inside the base, which served as a subject table for reproduction.

When folded, the device was no larger than a large book, such as a volume of an encyclopedia.

The copy shown in the photograph was used by East German intelligence personnel, the Stasi.

Technical specifications of the S-64 reproduction unit

Copying machine in an attaché case

The American copying machine shown in the photograph was secretly placed in a regular attaché case.

After opening the suitcase, the illuminators were set to the working position and could be powered from the mains or a battery. A modified Pentax SLR camera was used as a camera.

It had a fixed focus position and used nylon gears to reduce noise. This type of reproduction unit was widely used by various American intelligence units.

Reproduction kit

This kit was used by Czech intelligence officers when photographing documents.

A small wooden box was used for its storage and transportation.

The kit was easily and quickly brought into working position. Colored marks on the tripod legs corresponded to the positions of the lens focusing ring.

A reproduction camera using the “rolling” method — optical scanning

Nowadays, the method of “rolling” or optical scanning used in this unusual camera would be called the familiar word “scanning”.

Image construction is carried out according to the same principle as in computer scanners, only the light-sensitive layer of photographic film acts as a storage device and keeper of information.

The device shown in the photograph allowed copying up to 40 pages, after which it was necessary to reload the film cassettes.

The device is camouflaged as a notebook.

The agent also had a real book of the same type at his disposal, which he used every day.

Copying documents was as follows: the device was opened, was mounted on the original with special wheels located on the edge of the binding and rolled along its surface.

These wheels set the camera mechanism in motion and also turned on the built-in light source.