A rare Neil Armstrong autograph from the Gemini space program is currently up for grabs at an online auction.
Signed in black ink by the moon's first visitor, it reads: "To Peter Vorzimmer - Best Wishes From Gemini VIII - Neil Armstrong". The lot, which features a photo of Gemini 8, also bears the signature of fellow Moonwalker and Gemini 8 colleague Dave Scott.
 The world’s rarest living signature |
Gemini 8, launched in March 1966, three years before Apollo 11, is famed for the first docking of two orbiting spacecraft. It also saw the first occurrence of a major in-flight system failure, which sparked a swift abort of the mission.
Scott would later command the successful Apollo 15 mission to the Moon.
Arriving with a $2,000 estimate, we believe the final price could be much higher, considering the considerable demand for Armstrong's autograph, a reflection of his prominence in space history, and the rarity of such items - he stopped signing in 1994.
According to the PFC40 Autograph Index, Armstrong's autograph rose in value from £550 ($840) to £5,950 ($9,110) between 2000 and 2011, at a rate of 24.17% pa. He is the world's rarest living signature.
You can own one of these rarities today through Paul Fraser Collectibles: take a look at this Life magazine page featuring the autographs of all three Apollo 11 crewmembers.
The estate of Peter Vorzimmer, the co-author of the 1967 NASA Project Gemini Chronology book, has provided several other superb space autographs for the auction, which ends on July 18.
They include a signed photo courtesy of Gene Cernan, the last man on the Moon, valued at $400, and a photo display autographed by first American in space Alan Shepard and Frank Borman, commander of Apollo 8, which has a $1,000 valuation.
