Vladimír Remek at the Czech MintThe Milky Way collectible series, loosely based on the successful Solar System cycle, presents the beauties of our galaxy as well as the daring conquerors of the cosmos. We dedicated the fifth of the twelve coins to the first Czechoslovak in space.
On March 2, 1978, military pilot Vladimír Remek aboard the Soyuz 28 embarked on a journey to the Salyut 6 orbital station. At that moment, he achieved a number of historical firsts. He became not only the first Czechoslovak and the first European cosmonaut, but also the first space traveler from a country other than the Soviet Union and the United States of America.
Together with the Russian Alexei Gubarev, he formed the first international crew in the history of spaceflights. He looked into space as the 87th person in a row — his predecessors included 43 Soviet cosmonauts and 43 American astronauts. The crew of the space station welcomed him according to the old Slavic custom - with bread and salt. In addition to helping with the daily operation of the habitat, a number of scientific tasks were waiting for him, which were prepared by Czechoslovak scientists, as well as a live broadcast broadcast by Czechoslovak Television. Vladimír Remek returned from space after 7 days, 22 hours and 18 minutes. To this day, he remains our only compatriot to have left his home planet...
He has recounted his experiences countless times since then — he still recounts them with great fervor and in as much detail as if it were yesterday when he returned from his triumphant journey. The participants of the autograph session, which took place on June 13, 2023 in the Prague store of the Czech Mint in Havelská Street, were convinced of this.
The interest was huge — the store was bursting at the seams, but the cosmonaut showed tremendous endurance. He tirelessly signed autographs, reminisced, posed for photographers and gave interviews to journalists. Admirers had Vladimír Remek sign ledasco - certificates or boxes with commemorative coins, which suddenly increased in price, collector's albums, but also photographs, bottles of wine or replicas of uniforms.
It was not the first space event of the Czech Mint. In 2008, Vladimír Remek appeared on commemorative medals, and in 2019 he became the patron of the Solar System cycle. Although the cosmonaut does not have a coin collection, he is close to collecting. The souvenir he brought back from space is to blame. “As part of the equipment, we were given a watch that we could keep. It was a mechanical chronometer, originally an aviation watch. To this day, I keep them in a bank safe, and in a way it was the beginning of the fact that I started collecting watches," Vladimír Remek confided.
Shortly after release, collectors bought up the greater half of the coin's limited run. Another emission from the Milky Way cycle enjoys the same popularity.
It is not without interest that older coins with solar system motifs, which are now hopelessly sold out, can be found on the secondary market for twice the original price.
posted 06-15-2023 03:12 PM
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