31-12-2015, 04:30 PM
Ray Mitcham Wrote:Peter Lemkin Wrote:I don't know if it has been mentioned yet in this thread, but some researcher long ago noted that the serial number of the Minox was one that was NOT available to the public [at that time, almost NO Minox could be sold publicly - they were for spy and undercover work, for the most part]. Minox company had certain serial numbers that could not be sold publicly, and the one found in the Paine's was one of those numbers. Not surprising as the Paines and Oswald were all intelligence assets.
Peter, apparently, the Paine's Minox III was stated to have a serial number 27253. Unfortunately, for the FBI, that number belonged to a Minox II,
Minox III numbers went from 31275/58499.
So we have a Minox III with a Minox II serial number. Some trick.
Move along nothing to see here.
Another interesting thing about the Minox Model A, III, now in the archives, is that the reported serial number for this camera, "27253" is not even close to the range of those that included color finishes (which, according to the Minox Historical Society, "began production at about serial number 58500"). The photograph of the archived Minox III (posted earlier in this thread) shows a Minox III with a gold finish. Here's a description of the Model IIIs from the Minox Historical Society:
THE MODEL IIIS
With the development of portable, affordable flash units, a slight redesign was in order for the Minox camera. For the first time a PC flash nipple was added and synchronized with the shutter. The Model IIIs began production at about serial number 58500 in 1954.
Due to the large numbers produced, some unique variants began to show up. The IIIs was [sic] the first Minox to experiment with colored finishes. The black "private eye" and gold "luxury" cameras were produced for retail channels, while the more rare pink, purple, blue and other colors were produced experimentally. There is also a silver and black variant known as the "panda" which shows up occasionally. These are (for the most part) cameras manufactured as the final test for a new employees training. Due to their sentimental significance, they are rarely on the open market.
Interestingly, some of the gold Minox A series cameras are actually reclaimed shells removed from trophies awarded for photography contests run in the 50's and 60's. Minox Labs in New York had these trophies created with the custom camera shell screwed into a ring by both ends, and mounted at the top of a base. These shells can be distinguished by holes on either end where the screws penetrated the skin. (emphasis mine)
Just a wild thought here...perhaps these camera shells were sealed shut when they were installed on trophies, which likely means they were never assigned serial numbers as they weren't really cameras...just camera shells. I wonder if it is possible that the camera in the archives is inoperable and sealed shut, because maybe it's not really a camera but a camera shell that was removed from a trophy?