By: Alex
The widely recognized LOMO LC-A camera was originally designed for use by KGB spies. In fact, during World War II (1939–1945) and the Cold War between the US and the USSR (from the end of WWII until the USSR’s dissolution in 1991), both superpowers engaged in intense espionage activities, which indirectly gave rise to many rare and unique photographic devices. Photography enthusiasts interested in spy cameras should definitely add the KGB Spy Camera Museum in New York City to their future travel itineraries.
The museum houses a large collection of spy cameras once used by the Soviet Union’s Committee for State Security (KGB, commonly known as the secret police) during the Soviet era. Generally speaking, spy cameras were either not particularly small or had to be camouflaged in ingenious ways. For example, one camera resembles a ring and can take five photos (five frames of film); another is disguised as a book, reportedly one of the KGB’s most frequently used spy cameras.
▲The F-21 spring-loaded camera, widely used by the KGB, hidden inside a book.
The museum’s owner, Julius Urbaitis, previously opened a similar museum called KGB Bunker in Kaunas, Lithuania. The New York museum currently holds around 3,500 exhibits, and the owner believes his collection is the largest of its kind in the world. Below are some of the spy cameras on display:
▲OSA Hornet: A spy camera disguised as a belt buckle.
▲A spy camera hidden inside a handbag, with a small button on the side that opens the lens cover.
▲A camera concealed within a ring, capable of taking five frames of film.
▲Zasada: A covert surveillance camera used for monitoring, capable of shooting hundreds of 32 x 32mm frames of film.
▲VEF Minox: The classic spy camera often seen in movies (the long, rectangular one at the front), this set also includes a developing tank and enlarger for photo processing.
▲A spy camera specifically designed for photographing passports and small documents.
The KGB Spy Camera Museum in New York is located on West 14th Street in Manhattan. It is open from 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM daily, Monday through Sunday, with an adult admission fee of $25 USD (approximately HK$195).
▲KGB Spy Camera Museum owner Julius Urbaitis and his daughter Agne Urbaitis.
Sources: PetaPixel, USSRPhoto