Fire-damaged and unusable Leica M4 and Summicron lens sells for around $2,000

You'd think an inoperable camera and lens damaged in a fire would be worthless. That's probably true most of the time, but not the case when the gear in question is a Leica M4 with a Summicron 50mm lens. The 1968 camera and lens, described by Flints Auctions in the United Kingdom as 'chargrilled,' sold for £1,488 including UK VAT, which is just over $2,100 at current conversion rates. The actual hammer price was £1,200 ($1,700). While a clean Leica M4 rangefinder camera is a beautiful camera w...