Charlie Chaplin's legendary Bell & Howell 2709 movie camera is expected to sell for £70,000 to £90,000 today at Christie's London. With its Mickey-Mouse ears and tripod mount, this hand-cranked 35mm was Chaplin's trademark, and the Hollywood camera before sound came into the picture. As confirmed by its February 23, 1918 receipt (two months after he set up Charlie Chaplin Studios Inc.), Chaplin bought the Bell & Howell straight from the factory for $2,000. Not a bad deal for the camera that would go on to film The Gold Rush, A Woman of Paris, and The Kid, to name a few. (Because multiple cameras were used at all times, Christie's believes that everything Chaplin filmed between 1918 and 1926 was at least partially shot with this 2709.) As Chaplin's eye on the world for decades, surely this witness to silent film's golden age has stories left to tell.

—Alannah Arguelles

Charlie Chaplin's legendary Bell & Howell 2709 movie camera.
Chaplin's February 23, 1918 receipt.