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Press Release - May 22, 2023
Apollo 11-Flown American Flag from Armstrong Family Collection Launches Heritage’s Space Exploration Auction Beyond $1.5 Million
| Apollo 9 spacecraft ID plate touches down at $37,500 DOWNLOAD DIGITAL PRESS KIT "Flags that were flown on any mission always generate major interest, but that just scratches the surface for this flag," says Brad Palmer, Director of Space Exploration at Heritage Auctions. "This one is exceptionally important because it was flown on Apollo 11, which included the first lunar landing, and came directly from the collection of Neil Armstrong, who of course was the first man to set foot on the moon. As far as desirability, it absolutely checks every box." An Apollo 9 Lunar Module Flown Spacecraft Identification Plate Display Originally from the Personal Collection of Mission Commander James McDivitt, with His Signed Certificate of Authenticity drew a winning bid of $37,500, while an Apollo 17 Lunar Module Flown Spacecraft Identification Plate reached $33,750. Apollo 9 was historically important because it was the first flight of the Command/ Service Module and the Lunar Module together. The Apollo 17 ID plate is just the second ever offered at auction. Interest always soars for the first to do just about anything, and that was the case when eager bidders drove Apollo 11 Vintage NASA "Red Number" Color Photos (Two), Images AS11-40-5863, & AS11-40-5886: Armstrong and Aldrin on the Lunar Surface all the way to $32,500, crushing the pre-auction estimate of $1,000. The first is of Buzz Aldrin emerging from the Eagle. The second is one of very few images of Armstrong on the moon. A fascinating lot that surged well beyond pre-auction expectations was an Apollo 16 Lunar Surface Flown EVA II Walking Traverse Map in Custom Wall Display, Directly from the Personal Collection of Charlie Duke, which drew 14 bids before landing in a new collection at $30,000. The map is just one of 30 lots from Duke, who served as CAPCOM — acting as communications liaison between NASA and the astronauts above — for the groundbreaking Apollo 11 mission and then was among the moonwalkers aboard Apollo 16. This map was used by Duke and John Young as they explored the Descartes Highlands upon the Lunar Rover. These maps were developed in case the Rover failed and the crew had to find their way back to Orion on foot. Other top lots in the auction included, but did were not limited to: A Wernher von Braun Typed Letter Signed, with Letters of Authenticity from Steve Zarelli, JSA, and John Reznikoff/ University Archives: $27,500 An Apollo 11 Lunar Surface Flown Beta Cloth Mission Insignia Presented by the Three Man Crew to Mission CAPCOM Charlie Duke in Framed Display, Directly from His Personal Collection: $21,250 A Mercury-Era Access and Identification Badges: Collection of Sixteen, Directly from the Estate of NASA Legend Chris Kraft: $21,250 A Grumman Apollo Lunar Module Landing Leg Deployment Truss Side-Frame Assembly: $20,000 Images and information about all lots in the auction can be found at HA.com/6273. Heritage Auctions is the largest fine art and collectibles auction house founded in the United States, and the world's largest collectibles auctioneer. Heritage maintains offices in New York, Dallas, Beverly Hills, Chicago, Palm Beach, London, Paris, Geneva, Amsterdam and Hong Kong. Heritage also enjoys the highest Online traffic and dollar volume of any auction house on earth (source: SimilarWeb and Hiscox Report). The Internet's most popular auction-house website, HA.com, has more than 1,600,000 registered bidder-members and searchable free archives of 6,000,000 past auction records with prices realized, descriptions and enlargeable photos. Reproduction rights routinely granted to media for photo credit. For breaking stories, follow us: HA.com/Facebook and HA.com/Twitter . Link to this release or view prior press releases . Hi-Res images available: Steve Lansdale, Public Relations Specialist 214-409-1699 or SteveL@HA.com |