September 7, 2002 — A disc containing lunar samples recovered by Apollo 11 astronauts and gifted to Sweden by the United States in 1970, was reported stolen today from a museum in Stockholm.

The four, millimeter-sized particles were displayed inside a coin-sized capsule inside a stainless steel cylinder, capped with a glass plate, according to a spokesman for the Swedish Museum of Natural History.

On Tuesday, September 3, museum staff found the plate smashed and the capsule missing.

The spokesman, Goeran Adenskog told the Associated Press that the police had investigated the theft, but had abandoned their efforts due to a lack of evidence.

"We don't think it has any commercial value when the moon dust has been taken out of its context," Adenskog explained to the AP. "Without documentation it is very difficult for a layman to determine whether its moon dust or earth dust."