posted 07-14-2008 12:08 AM               

It seems that some of the missions have these so called 'Recovery Ship Covers' and I was also wondering if they are typically authentic (such as the insurance covers) and if they are limited in existence.

If anyone has info on these kinds of covers for the Apollo program, please let me know!

posted 07-14-2008 09:27 AM               

Recovery Ship cover collecting is a fascinating sub-area of Space Cover collection. Basicly, whenever a space capsule needed to be recovered (which included all the manned missions plus some unmanned missions) one or two Recovery Fleets (Recovery Forces) were placed in the Altantic and/or Pacific Oceans. These Recovery Forces were made up of as few as 3 or 4 ships to as many as a couple of dozen ships. The main Recovery Force was usually led by an Aircraft Carrier or similar ship and is referred to as the Primary Recovery Ship (PRS). The other ships consisted of Destroyers, Minesweepers, Oilers etc and are referred to as Secondary Recovery Ships (SRS). In addition there were communication and tracking ships (refered to by NASA as tracking stations).

All the larger ships (Carriers and Destroyers) and some of the smaller ships had their own postmark and postal clerk. Thus mail could be postmarked aboard the ship on the day of Recovery. The ships without such facilities had to wait until they returned to port to have covers postmarked with the port's postmark. They can be identified by containing the ship's corner card and/or the ship's cachet. Of course, postmark dates for these covers are quite variable.

Covers were produced for all the manned mission and some of the unmanned mission by most of the ships involved in the mission. The covers from the early missions are extemely hard to find but covers from Mercury 8 onwards are, for most ships, are available. The prices vary greatly depending on the mission and the cover. Firstly, PRS covers are worth significantly more than the SRS covers and covers from the Mercury program are worth more than the Gemini program which are worth more than the Apollo program. The cachet can also effect the price of the cover. The two most common cachets from Gemini onwards are the Morris Beck printed covers and the Navy Rubber Stamp cacheted covers (these were also designed by Morris Beck for the Navy and are similar if not identical to the Beck printed covers). The Beck printed covers, which are slightly more valuable than the Navy cacheted covers, can be identified by a number of the form Bxxx. Note that Beck produced covers for many Naval events, not just Recovery Ships.

For Apollo 12, the PRS was the USS Hornet and its cover is worth in the range of US$18-$25 for the most common variation. Special PRS covers and certain postmark variations are worth more. The various SRS covers are worth in the range of US$6-12 depending on the cachet. Signed covers are worth a little more depending on who signed them.

A good way to get a feel for prices is to do a search on eBay under stamps using the words Recovery Ship. That will usually produce quite a few covers. Wait for the auction to finish and check the prices the different covers go for. You can also carry out the same search under completed lots.

posted 07-14-2008 09:32 AM               

An excellent resource is Ray Cartier's Prime Recovery Ship Handbook available from Space Unit. He shows, for example, that the machine cancel for Gemini 2 is far more scarce than the larger diameter hand cancel. Additionally, the cachet and autographs affect the value of the cover. Printed artwork generally commands a better price than rubber stamped or typed inscriptions. Signatures from key participants (notably the flight crew) make the envelope more collectable and enhance value.

posted 07-14-2008 12:52 PM               

I think I did...I assume the prices mentioned here are for unsigned covers!