Leica celebrates China Republic’s 60th anniversary with 24-carat gold-plated camera

What better way to celebrate the 60th anniversary of a country that seems to have a, um, problem with all forms of open media than with a, um, camera? Oh but what a camera it is! Leica has taken it upon themselves to create this beauty. It’s gold-plated(24 carat), and as  you can see, comes in colors to celebrate the People’s Republic of China. Not bad. Limited to just 60 units, each hallmarked with a year between 1949 and 2009, the Golden Camera is encased in red calfskin, bears an inscription of Mao Zedong’s favorite slogan and includes the Leica Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 Gold lens. It also costs a whopping $30,000. Wait, now China also has more expensive limited edition cameras than the Western World?! Why, I never.