Apollo 11 memorabilia emblem ascends to $85,400

As we reported, the biggest sale in Bonhams' Tuesday sale of Space and Aviation memorabilia was Neil Armstrong's flight plan which was inscribed with his famous first words spoken on the moon. This sold for a grand $152,000.

However, it was not the only extraordinary collectible that any space fan would give their teeth to get hold of. Command Module Pilot for Apollo 11 Michael Collins's emblem, with the classic 'eagle landing' image - which he himself designed - was also on offer.


Michael Collins's emblem, also signed by Armstrong and Aldrin

The piece has been signed by all three members of the flight: Collins himself, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. Collins has also written 'Flown to the Moon aboard Apollo XI' at the top - though this was added in the 1990s. All of the signatures are from 1969.

Bidders believed that the $40,000-60,000 guide price was too low, and pushed on until a delighted collector saw the hammer fall at $85,400.

Another major sale was that of a contingency checklist from Apollo 13, with annotations from Fred Haise and Jim Lovell. This was particularly appropriate, as the auction was taking place on the 30th anniversary of Apollo 13's oxygen tank explosion, which nearly resulted in a tragedy.


The critical Apollo 13 checklist, signed by Lovell and Haise

"We had experienced an extremely busy time after the explosion." noted Fred Haise in the accompanying letter. Most of the annotations refer to circuit breakers, with Houston sending instructions as to the best way to use their limited power.

The checklist, signed by both, also proved to have more power than expected, selling for $45,750 against an estimate of $20,000-30,000.

Also sold recently was Michael Collins's flightsuit, but a signed suit worn by Buzz Aldrin remains available.


 

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