Space memorabilia specialists Lunar Legacies are shaping up to deliver another exciting auction next week with a wide range of collectibles from the Mercury missions to the space shuttle era.
Previously they've sold pieces of the doomed space shuttle Challenger, one of which sold for $7,550.
The wide variety of items available includes the following highlights: A rare 3" diameter Gemini-era NASA meatball patch with a bare cloth backing, and of the type worn by the Gemini astronauts on their spacesuits.
This is a bit frayed where the vector extends over the patch, but otherwise is in good shape.
From around the same time is Charles Conrad's flown Gemini 5 Experimental Procedures Book checklist page, 5"x 8", with a photocopy of the original signed letter by Conrad when the entire book was sold in 1994.
Charles 'Pete' Conrad went on to be a moonwalker alongside Alan Bean on Apollo 12. The book is in nice condition and surely something that all space collectors would want to own.
From the Apollo era itself there are two stand-out lots: Firstly, there is a rare Apollo 8 SC-103 access badge (Spacecraft 103) signed on the back with authentic signatures by the Apollo 8 crew of Borman, Lovell and Anders.
Jim Lovell of course has the bittersweet distinction of being the only man who flew to the moon twice without landing on it (the second time being the hair-raising near disaster that was Apollo 13).
 The triple-signed Apollo 16 lithograph |
Secondly, there's a NASA colour lithograph of the Apollo 16 crew, signed with authentic signatures by Young, Mattingly and Duke. Despite a couple of small handling dings in the top right corner, this is generally in great shape.
None of the items have been given clear estimates and at the moment none have bids higher than a few hundred dollars, but we expect some of these to reach at least four figures before the online auction closes on August 20.
Watch this space for the results of this sale.
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