Author
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Topic: [RR Auction] Space and Aviation (May 2014)
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BLivingston Member Posts: 60 From: Boston,Ma. USA Registered: Jan 2010
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posted 03-26-2014 09:21 AM
RR Auction's next Space and Aviation Auction is set to take place this May. Our 500+ item auction covers all eras of aviation and the space race, from the Wright Brothers all the way through Columbia STS-107. We will be offering several stellar pieces, including: A full preview will be online by April 25. The auction will go live May 15 and close May 22. Please let me know if you require a print catalog.Join us in May to witness continued RR Auction record-shattering results! ------------------ Bobby Livingston Executive Vice President, RR Auction |
Robert Pearlman Editor Posts: 42988 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 04-25-2014 09:40 AM
quote: Originally posted by BLivingston: A full preview will be online by April 25.
The auction preview is now online. |
rjurek349 Member Posts: 1190 From: Northwest Indiana Registered: Jan 2002
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posted 04-25-2014 10:18 AM
I am really excited to see lot #138, the flown $2 bills from GT5. Looks like I am going to have to open up the piggy bank for that one! |
Rick Mulheirn Member Posts: 4167 From: England Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 04-25-2014 11:22 AM
The Apollo 15 flown hardware is stunning! |
Greggy_D Member Posts: 977 From: Michigan Registered: Jul 2006
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posted 04-25-2014 12:39 PM
quote: Originally posted by rjurek349: I am really excited to see lot #138, the flown $2 bills from GT5.
Rich, is this the first time you've seen cut $2 bills where one half was flown? |
space1 Member Posts: 853 From: Danville, Ohio Registered: Dec 2002
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posted 04-25-2014 03:04 PM
This is simply by far the best auction I have ever seen. |
4allmankind Member Posts: 1043 From: Dallas Registered: Jan 2004
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posted 04-25-2014 03:31 PM
I just said the exact same thing. My want list is easily twice as long as it usually is. |
rgarner Member Posts: 1193 From: Shepperton, United Kingdom Registered: Mar 2012
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posted 04-25-2014 05:02 PM
I've already set aside a majority of my savings for this auction. It looks like this year is going to be good for collectors! |
rjurek349 Member Posts: 1190 From: Northwest Indiana Registered: Jan 2002
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posted 04-25-2014 05:33 PM
quote: Originally posted by Greggy_D: Rich, is this the first time you've seen cut $2 bills where one half was flown?
Greg - yes, first time. I had heard about this as a similar sort of FAA flight type thing, but I just love the Guenter association, etc. Very cool. Will have less appeal to numismatists because of the "damage" to the bills, but more appeal to space nuts like us. I love that lot.And I have to agree with everyone - this is one damn' good auction with lots of great lots. It is going to be an exciting auction cycle this year. |
Dirk Member Posts: 933 From: Belgium Registered: Jul 2003
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posted 05-08-2014 06:37 PM
Can someone explain this? If you're a space geek gamer looking for the ultimate joystick, then feast your eyes on the Apollo 15 "attitude controller assembly" - the stick used by commander David R. Scott to land the Falcon lunar module on the Moon in 1971, and which goes under the hammer later this month. |
Robert Pearlman Editor Posts: 42988 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 05-08-2014 06:39 PM
Many of the astronauts, from Apollo 11 and onward, either kept or were presented with the hand controllers from the command and lunar modules. The law passed in 2012 confirmed that the handles were theirs to own, donate or sell. |
space1 Member Posts: 853 From: Danville, Ohio Registered: Dec 2002
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posted 05-08-2014 08:45 PM
Records show that the Command Module control handle grips were removed and presented to the astronauts starting with Apollo 8.What makes this Apollo 15 LM handle so unusual is that it is the complete control unit (not just the grip). And of course it is from the Lunar Module, having been removed and returned by David Scott before discarding the LM. There could be at most 12 such lunar surface flown units, most of which are probably still among the astronauts' personal collections. |
Rick Mulheirn Member Posts: 4167 From: England Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 05-09-2014 03:03 AM
I always thought there was only one rotational controller in each LM... on the commander's side. Charlie Duke told me they were unable to remove the controller from Apollo 16 so that would leave a maximum of nine flown units and I don't recall reading anything about their removal prior to Apollo 14. |
Ken Havekotte Member Posts: 2915 From: Merritt Island, Florida, Brevard Registered: Mar 2001
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posted 05-09-2014 05:26 AM
Of the two rotational controllers, also known as the attitude controller assemblies from each flown lunar module, I did actually see Jim Irwin's unit while visiting his office and home in Colorado Springs during the mid-1980s. His unit, intact with cable connectors included, came from LM-10/Falcon, as he told me, with Scott keeping his own. I don't think any LM-rotational controllers came back from Apollos 9 and 10 as Robert has indicated, however, I have not heard of a retrieved ACA from Apollo 11's LM-5/Eagle as I don't think LMP-Aldrin ever reported keeping his own. If Aldrin didn't keep his, it would seem likely that Armstrong did not as well. As for Apollo 12, if I am not mistaken, both ACAs from LM-6 were disconnected and returned back to Earth. For Apollo 13, I am not sure about the lunar lander rotational controllers, but I did see one of the armrest units dismantled from LM-7/Aquarius and presented by the astronaut crew to the launch team and work force at Kennedy Space Center. It would seem unlikely to me that any of the attitude controller assemblies were disconnected from Aquarius, but Lovell and Haise could be asked (I'll do so, unless someone already has the answer to that question). But do we know for certain about the later lunar modules from Apollo 14, 16 and 17? Of course, perhaps Mitchell, Duke and Cernan could be asked as well, if not already done so.
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space1 Member Posts: 853 From: Danville, Ohio Registered: Dec 2002
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posted 05-09-2014 05:44 AM
Mitchell has his LM ACA from Apollo 14 (seen on televised reports during the 16mm camera controversy), and Cernan has his from Apollo 17 (displayed as part of a space exhibition some years ago). |
Ken Havekotte Member Posts: 2915 From: Merritt Island, Florida, Brevard Registered: Mar 2001
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posted 05-09-2014 06:10 AM
For the serious space patch collectors out there, did anyone catch Lot 139 in this month's upcoming RR space and aviation auction?One of the first Pete Conrad-released flown mission patches from Gemini 5 is up for auction! Conrad reported more than 25 years ago that only a handful of cloth patches with the visible slogan, "8 Days or Bust," were carried aboard by him and Command Pilot Gordon Cooper during GT-5's record-breaking manned spaceflight in Aug. 1965. The Cooper/Conrad patch for the third manned Gemini spaceflight became the first astronaut mission patch ever — and flown aboard in space! Pilot Conrad also included a hand-written letter of certification, also signed by Cooper, explaining the first patch-creation origin and difficulty in having NASA Administrator James Webb approve it. Gemini 5 successfully broke all existing space records after covering more than 3.3 million miles in its 119 orbits over a 190 hour period. |
spaced out Member Posts: 3110 From: Paris, France Registered: Aug 2003
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posted 05-09-2014 07:12 AM
This is indeed a rare patch. I've only seen 6 or 7 flown examples sold previously and perhaps more surprisingly just 3 unflown examples.In fact this RR Auction includes more rare patches than any other space auction to-date, including this Gemini 5 crew souvenir patch, an ultra-rare GTA-6 crew patch, a Gemini 7 crew souvenir patch, Gemini 9, 10, 11, and 12 crew patches, an Apollo 7 'knit' patch, Apollo 7 crew patch, 2 (!) Apollo 8 crew souvenir patches, Apollo 9 and Apollo 10 Texas Art Embroidery patches, and an Apollo 11 crew patch... |
space1 Member Posts: 853 From: Danville, Ohio Registered: Dec 2002
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posted 05-09-2014 09:45 AM
We can also recognize the rarity of the LM lunar surface flown COAS. There could only be 6 of these. Lovell's from Apollo 13 is in the Adler Planetarium. Young's from Apollo 16 was sold at auction a few years ago. |
Jurvetson Member Posts: 93 From: Los Altos an SF, CA, United States Registered: Sep 2011
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posted 05-09-2014 08:06 PM
Yes, John Young's COAS was the first item in my space collection (2009), and it's still one of my favorites.
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spaced out Member Posts: 3110 From: Paris, France Registered: Aug 2003
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posted 05-15-2014 10:02 AM
I love the start of an RR Auction. For a brief moment you can 'own' a stunning collection of space artifacts at their opening prices. Of course the next morning your feeble bids have been trampled into the lunar dust but that fleeting moment of glory is a fun one... |
pcpeggs New Member Posts: From: Registered:
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posted 05-15-2014 02:31 PM
Yes - those brief few minutes where you are the high bidder, and you think that maybe...just maybe...what you want has been un-noticed by the masses |
mmmoo Member Posts: 551 From: London, England Registered: May 2001
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posted 05-15-2014 02:46 PM
Two photo identification errors I have noticed: - Lot 361. Apollo 12 Crew Signed Photo
The photo shows the Apollo 14 LM, Antares and not the Apollo 12 LM, Intrepid - Lot 491. Gene Cernan signed photo
The photo shows Harrison Schmitt, not Gene Cernan
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Tallpaul Member Posts: 153 From: Rocky Point, NY, USA Registered: Feb 2012
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posted 05-15-2014 03:36 PM
quote: Originally posted by spaced out: For a brief moment you can 'own' a stunning collection of space artifacts at their opening prices.
Chris, I know what you mean, but look on the bright side, your "feeble" bid does allow you to bid when the 30 minute rule goes into effect, you still have time to remortgage the house. |
albatron Member Posts: 2732 From: Stuart, Florida Registered: Jun 2000
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posted 05-18-2014 09:31 PM
Did anyone else notice the inscription on lot 316? Who would seek an inscription like that? |
benfairfax Member Posts: 199 From: NSW Australia Registered: Jan 2011
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posted 05-19-2014 08:15 PM
I'm loving the price of the John Young WSS litho….I love watching these auctions unfold.
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Greggy_D Member Posts: 977 From: Michigan Registered: Jul 2006
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posted 05-19-2014 08:20 PM
Prices are really jumping on a good number of lots, well before the cutoff. |
dtheat New Member Posts: 4 From: Wiesbaden, Hesse, Germany Registered: Feb 2012
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posted 05-22-2014 08:50 AM
I am not sure what to make of Lot 408. It is a piece of the Lunar Surface Safety Line accompanied by a short autograph-like note from Alan Shepard. It states that he (Shepard) is presenting the line-piece to Ken Havecotte. What puzzles me is, that this particular patch of the line (to Stephen T. Dunham) has been auctioned separately on RR Auction in 2012. That means that the line-piece referred to in the photo is (most likely) not the one the seller is now offering together with the photo. The only explanation could be that Shepard presented a different piece of the line to Ken Havekotte, who later sold the photograph separately and the current buyer got hold of another line-piece and has now "repackaged" everything. Either that, or the photograph might be dodgy. Does anyone know what to make of it? (By the way, just as a disclaimer: I am currently bidding on it, but am not so sure anymore. And one more question: have ever been fake line-pieces been spotted?) |
mmmoo Member Posts: 551 From: London, England Registered: May 2001
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posted 05-22-2014 08:51 AM
If you look at close ups of the 2012 auction piece and this piece, the safety lines cards have different blobs of glue, so there must have been more than one card dedicated to Stephen T Dunham. |
dtheat New Member Posts: 4 From: Wiesbaden, Hesse, Germany Registered: Feb 2012
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posted 05-22-2014 09:11 AM
You're right! Good spot. So it's either a picture from another auction (and they used it as a stock photo, although I do not believe it) or there have indeed been more cards issued to Stephen Dunham. I still wonder though, why Alan Shepard would present a line-patch, that was obviously intended for someone else in this way. Did he buy it to give it away as a gift? Or is it more likely that Ken Havekotte asked Alan to sign this photo as a sort of "certificate of authenticity". But I guess only Ken would be able to answer that question. By the way, is there any official material documenting or discussing the give-away of the line-patches? |
Ken Havekotte Member Posts: 2915 From: Merritt Island, Florida, Brevard Registered: Mar 2001
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posted 05-22-2014 03:00 PM
Let me answer the question(s) from dtheat about RR's current space and aviation auction of Lot 408. When Admiral Shepard signed the litho of him on the lunar surface to me, he was well aware, knew of, and saw that I had a few of the NASA-issued wallet-size laminated cards that contained a cut piece of Apollo 14's flown lunar surface safety line. Shepard was only certifying on the picture, so-to-speak, that my card--showed to him during a private signing with me at the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame in Titusville, FL,--was indeed an original card, even though, it had the typed-in name of a NASA employee on one side of it. It was one of three special inscriptions that America's first spaceman and Apollo 14 commander/moonwalker did for me as a personal favor. But this is the only photograph of this type that Shepard signed/inscribed in such a special way to me that contained a longer notation than the other two photos that we did. Of the two other NASA lithos, which depicted the lunar explorer standing by the U.S. flag while on the moon, Shepard wrote on them a brief reference about the lunar surface safety line cards. One of the two flag photo-cards was given to veteran NBC aerospace correspondent Jay Barbree, while the second, I have kept myself. Let me also point out that the name of Stephen Dunham on the card has no relation or direct tie-in to the Shepard inscription(s). Any similar NASA-issued card could apply, in my opinion, as Shepard was only certifying to the fact of what the cards contained -- a well-known flown cut-piece of the Apollo 14 lunar surface safety line that came from the Apollo 14 crew and NASA itself! |
dtheat New Member Posts: 4 From: Wiesbaden, Hesse, Germany Registered: Feb 2012
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posted 05-22-2014 04:09 PM
Ken, really thanks a lot for clearing things up. Your explanation makes perfect sense and something like that was, in fact, one of my first thoughts. |
YankeeClipper Member Posts: 617 From: Dublin, Ireland Registered: Mar 2011
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posted 05-22-2014 06:41 PM
Wow! Some exceptional bidding going in for the Apollo 15 LM Flown artifacts. |
Greggy_D Member Posts: 977 From: Michigan Registered: Jul 2006
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posted 05-22-2014 06:55 PM
It appears the highest price record via a public auction is going to be broken tonight. |
Robert Pearlman Editor Posts: 42988 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 05-22-2014 07:00 PM
Keep in mind, the Hasselblad claimed to have flown on Apollo 15 sold recently for $910,400 at public auction... |
Greggy_D Member Posts: 977 From: Michigan Registered: Jul 2006
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posted 05-22-2014 07:05 PM
I'll amend my remarks to say: "the highest price record (for a space artifact with 100% ironclad authenticity) via a public auction." |
Robert Pearlman Editor Posts: 42988 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 05-22-2014 07:13 PM
And the Apollo 15 rotational hand controller (Lot 431) sold for $498,011 (plus the buyer's premium, for a total of $610,064)!The Apollo 15 COAS (Lot 432) closed at $103,004 ($126,180 with premium). |
Greggy_D Member Posts: 977 From: Michigan Registered: Jul 2006
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posted 05-22-2014 07:17 PM
Don't forget the buyer's premium comes down to 20% if you pay via cash, check, or wire (which are the only methods of payment accepted if the amount is over $5000). |
Robert Pearlman Editor Posts: 42988 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 05-22-2014 07:22 PM
Good catch. I've updated the figures above (and asked RR Auction for the official totals as well).Update: To stay consistent with RR's practice, the official prices now cited above reflect a 22.5 percent buyer's premium (per their terms and conditions). |
datkatz Member Posts: 176 From: New York, NY Registered: Mar 2009
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posted 05-22-2014 07:22 PM
Can someone explain to me why Lot 343 (swatch of Apollo 11 Kapton foil) went for over $4300? |
neo1022 Member Posts: 281 From: Santa Monica, CA Registered: Jun 2013
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posted 05-22-2014 08:07 PM
Wow, those closing bids are astronomical. I'm stunned by the Apollo 11 kapton swatch. Clearly, the bidders are *not* cS members...
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