Vest Pocket Ensign
(mounted
in handbag)
ca. 1925
Houghton-Butcher, Ltd., London, England. Gift of Eastman Kodak Company. 1974:0037:1671. oncealed and disguised cameras have always intrigued people. Designers loved dreaming up clever ways to incorporate photographic devices into everyday items. “Purse cameras” first appeared in the nineteenth century with bulky dry-plate apparatus in big Victorian-era handbags. By the time Samuel Aspis of London patented his “Combination of Hand Bag . . . and Collapsible Photographic Camera” in 1928, roll-film vest pocket cameras were at the height of their popularity. Aspis designed his version around an ordinary Ensign Vest Pocket, which folded flat enough to mount inside a
special leather clutch purse. To take photos, the purse flap was flipped over and a mirror panel unsnapped. The camera faceplate had to be pulled out to lock the struts, and it was then ready to begin filling up the roll of 127 film with pictures. Metal brackets riveted to the purse held the camera securely. The Aspis purse camera wasn’t intended for surreptitious photography, but rather as a convenient way to always have a camera ready to use. And one would assume the fashion-conscious dame of the time would have shoes and earrings to match the Ensign clutch.
detective
C
500 CAMER AS
91