Portable X-Ray Machine

Soviet Union c. 1970

X-Ray machines aren’t just used in hospitals and airports, they’re also a crucial tool used by the Diplomatic Security Service to detect threats to U.S. diplomatic missions around the world. This portable x-ray kit, manufactured in 1970s, was used by DSS Technical Security Officers to look for espionage devices, explosives, and other potential threats. In the 1980s these devices played a crucial role in finding Soviet bugs placed in typewriters in the U.S. Embassy in Moscow and at other U.S. diplomatic missions.

  • Source/Credit: Transfer from the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, Department of State
  • Catalog Number: 2011.0032.01
  • Created: c. 1970
  • Acquired: 2011

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MLA Format

Portable X-Ray Machine. c. 1970. National Museum of American Diplomacy, https://diplomacy.state.gov/items/portable-x-ray-machine

Chicago Format

c. 1970. 2011. National Museum of American Diplomacy, https://diplomacy.state.gov/items/portable-x-ray-machine

APA Format

(c. 1970). Portable X-Ray Machine [Object]. National Museum of American Diplomacy, Washington, D.C., United States. https://diplomacy.state.gov/items/portable-x-ray-machine