Chaplin camera goes up for sale

Chaplin set up his own studio in Hollywood

The film camera used by Charlie Chaplin to make movies including The Kid and The Gold Rush is going up for sale.

The silent movie camera is expected to fetch between £70,000 and £90,000 at Christie's in London on 25 July.

Chaplin bought the Bell & Howell 2709 model in 1918 for use at his Chaplin Studios in Hollywood.

Screen legend Chaplin was born in south London in 1889 and moved to the US in 1912 where he later found fame with his iconic tramp character.

The Bell & Howell 2709 was considered a classic camera of its age before the advent of sound around 1930.

Record set

It was actually used up until the 1950s for animation and the creation of titles, which did not require sound recording.

Chaplin was awarded an honorary Oscar for his contribution to film in 1975.

The camera will be auctioned as part of Christie's motion picture camera sale and will be on view at the auction house's South Kensington branch from 21 July.

A hat and cane used by Charlie Chaplin sold for almost $140,000 (£77,000), a record price for a piece of the actor's memorabilia, in Los Angeles last year.