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American Flag Flown on the Apollo XIV that Landed on the Moon, including an Edgar Mitchell LOA....
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$5,000.00
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Description
American Flag Flown on the Apollo XIV that Landed on the Moon, including an Edgar Mitchell LOA. This 4" x 6", rayon, 50-star, United States flag was one of 25 carried in the OFK on the Apollo XIV mission by astronauts Alan Shepard, Stuart Roosa and Edgar Mitchell. Apollo 14 was the third successful manned lunar landing, taking place on February 5th, 1971, with Mitchell and Shepard walking on the moon.It was presented to Sergeant Joe Garino USAF, the Physical Condition Supervisor for NASA, who trained astronauts from the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo programs in the gym at NASA's Manned Spacecraft Center. Garino promoted the role of physical conditioning as crucial for peak astronaut performance and successful missions. He also invented space exercise equipment and developed improvements for the space helmets and air masks for the comfort of the astronauts. Thanks to his innovations and close training with the astronauts, Joe Garino was often the recipient of space souvenirs.
The flag includes a letter and an Apollo 14 patch that has been affixed to a 10.5" x 13.5" mat, framed to 12" x 15". The typed letter (signed "Edgar D. Mitchell") is on undated NASA stationery and is addressed to Joe Garino. Signed as Captain, USN, LM Pilot, Apollo XIV, Mitchell writes:
"Dear Joe: The enclosed American flag was carried to the moon on the Apollo XIV mission with Alan Shepard, Stu Roosa and myself. Please accept it as a token of our thanks for the support you provided in making Apollo XIV a success."
The letter is soiled, and the left half is damp stained, affecting Mitchell's signature. The flag and patch, however, are in excellent condition.
Our achievements in space certainly rank among mankind's greatest technological and scientific achievements. In the United States these efforts have been the responsibility of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) who's Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo Programs eventually led to landing men on the Moon.
However, in addition to the extraordinary technological feats involved in space launches, orbiting the Earth, Flag.
Fully-documented American space artifacts are rare, when taken in comparison to almost virtually any other established category of historically notable "Earthly" object; and among collectors of such artifacts flown flags from any mission are highly desirable.
Apollo 14 was the eighth manned mission in the Apollo program and the third mission to land on the Moon, touching down on February 5, 1971.The astronauts were Alan Shepard (Commander), Stuart Roosa (Command Module Pilot) and Edgar Mitchell (Lunar Module Pilot). After landing in the Fra Mauro formation, which was the intended destination for Apollo 13, Shepard and Mitchell took two moon walks, adding new seismic studies to the by-then familiar Apollo experiment package, and using a Mobile Equipment Transporter (MET) nicknamed the "lunar rickshaw" cart to carry their equipment. Roosa, meanwhile, took pictures from on board the command module "Kitty Hawk", which remained in lunar orbit. Shepard and Mitchell had taken various scientific instruments with them on the flight and upon touchdown conducted various experiments as well as collected almost 100 pounds (45kg) of lunar samples to take with them back to Earth. The flight itself marked several new historic milestones for human spaceflight including: the first use of the aforementioned MET, the largest payload place in lunar orbit, the largest payload ever returned from the lunar surface, the longest time ever spent on the surface of the moon (33 hours), the longest lunar surface EVA (9 hours and 17 minutes), the first use of shortened lunar orbit rendezvous techniques, the first use of a colour TV on the lunar service, the first extensive orbital scientific survey and, on the way back to Earth, the crew conducted the first U.S. materials processing experiments in space. The Apollo 14 astronauts were the last lunar explorers to be quarantined on their return from the Moon.
Shepard and Mitchell named their landing site Fra Mauro Base, and this designation is recognized by the International Astronomical Union (depicted in Latin on lunar maps as 'Statio Fra Mauro').
Provenance: From the collection of renowned former physical trainer of the astronauts Joe Garino. From the Zaricor Flag Collection.
View all of [The Zaricor Flag Collection ]
Auction Info
2023 November 13 - 14 Americana & Political Signature Auction Signature® Auction #6276 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
November, 2023
13th-14th
Monday-Tuesday
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 18
Lot Tracking Activity: N/A
Page Views: 644
Buyer's Premium per Lot:
25% on the first $300,000 (minimum $49), plus 20% of any amount between $300,000 and $3,000,000, plus 15% of any amount over $3,000,000 per lot.
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