The Shanghai Red Flag 20 (often referred to by its Pinyin name, Hongqi 20) is the ultimate "unicorn" in the world of M-mount rangefinders. From a mechanical standpoint, the camera is an unabashed reverse-engineered clone of the Leica M4. It features the same internal mechanisms, including the combined viewfinder/rangefinder, the rapid film loading system, and the mechanical horizontal-travel cloth focal-plane shutter.

Aesthetically, however, the Red Flag 20 differs slightly from the Leica M4. It features a slightly blockier, squared-off top plate that shares design DNA with the Leica M5 and early Leicaflex SLRs. The front of the camera prominently features the calligraphy for "Hongqi" (Red Flag), which was reportedly written by Chairman Mao Zedong himself.

Because the Red Flag 20 was designed as a "prestige" kit to impress foreign dignitaries, it natively utilizes the Leica M-mount and was delivered with a set of three spectacular lenses, which were direct optical copies of Leitz's finest glass at the time:

• 35mm f/1.4 (Copy of the Leitz Summilux)
• 50mm f/1.4 (Copy of the Leitz Summilux)
• 90mm f/2.0 (Copy of the Leitz Summicron)

To produce these lenses and the complex M4-style rangefinder mechanisms, the absolute best optical engineers and craftsmen in China were pulled from military and aerospace divisions to work on the project.

History

The history of the Red Flag 20 is steeped in Cold War politics and the Cultural Revolution.

The Prestige Project (1969) In 1969, approaching the 20th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, Jiang Qing (Madame Mao, the last wife of Chairman Mao) demanded the creation of a top-tier Chinese camera to rival the West. She was an avid photographer and specifically requested a camera that matched or exceeded the quality of her personal Leica. The Shanghai No. 2 Camera Factory was tasked with the impossible job of reverse-engineering the Leica M4 from scratch.

Production and Scarcity (1973 - 1979) Due to the immense complexity of hand-crafting over 400 precision parts, the cameras were not ready for the actual 20th anniversary in 1969. Actual production began around 1973 and trickled on until the late 1970s.

The manufacturing cost of a single Red Flag 20 outfit was exorbitant (estimated to be the equivalent of $6,000 USD at the time). Because of this, it was never commercialized. The few cameras that were completed were given as state gifts to foreign diplomats or allocated to high-ranking government press agencies like Xinhua.

Legacy Total production is estimated to be somewhere between 200 and 271 units. Today, the Red Flag 20 is one of the very few "copies" in the camera world that is actually worth significantly more than the original camera it was based on. Complete outfits routinely fetch between $50,000 and $100,000 at international camera auctions [1].

Sources

• [1] Leitz Photographica Auction. Hong Qi / Red Flag 20 Outfit. https://www.leitz-auction.com
• [2] Novacon. Chinese Oddity Cameras: Hong Qi. http://www.novacon.com.br/odditycameras/hongqi.htm
• [3] Shanghai Daily. Watch the birdie! Seagulls are back. https://archive.shine.cn/
• [4] Leski Auctions. Lot #112 Red Flag 20 (Hong Qi 20). https://auctions.leski.com.au
• [5] Reddit: r/Leica. Red Flag 20 and Chinese Leica Copies. https://www.reddit.com/r/Leica