posted 06-23-2014 10:01 AM               

I have one of each of the Mercury astronauts, one of each of the Gemini missions, GT-5, GT-7, GT-6, GT-9, GT-10 and GT-11 are signed by both crew members. The Gemini 4 photos are one each of McDivitt (in capsule) and White (inscribed EVA).

I do have an Apollo 8 crew signed earthrise that is inscribed, all other Apollo missions are represented by one photo from each of the crew members. The Eisele, Stafford (Apollo 10) and Swigert are business suit photos. The rest are in flight photos, including a Ron Evans inscribed litho.

Of the Apollo astronauts, the Eisele, Stafford, Armstrong, Swigert, Irwin, Schmitt and Evans are lithos. Everything else is glossy photo. The Eisele, Armstrong, Swigert, Irwin, Schmitt and Evans have a dedicated inscription, the Irwin is handwritten. The Shepard is a rare uninscribed flag photo. I also have a nice flag photo of Conrad.

The Skylab photos are crew signed uninscribed lithos. The ASTP photo is uninscribed crew photo (glossy).

I purchased most of them through the usual trusted sites, Novaspace, Farthest Reaches and a few through Astronaut Archives. My only eBay purchases were from cS members. I also have about 20 that I got signed in person at the last three Spacefests.

All photos are in archival frames with UV glass and acid free mats and backing. I keep all three crewmembers in the same frame. They're just easier to hang that way.

Individually, these photos are worth between 25 and 30k. I'm not necessarily looking to sell them right now, but I was just wondering how much could I ask for or expect to get for the collection as a whole? In other words, how much more is a collection worth versus individual photos, and what constitutes a collection?

Would it be more practical to sell each set of three Apollo crew photos as a set of three, or should I sell each of the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo sets individually?

posted 06-23-2014 01:49 PM               

quote:

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Originally posted by schnappsicle:
...Individually, these photos are worth between 25 and 30k...

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posted 06-23-2014 02:47 PM               

quote:

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Originally posted by schnappsicle:
how much more is a collection worth versus individual photos, and what constitutes a collection?.

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In my opinion, the opposite is true.

To you, it is a "collection." To others it is a potential bulk lot to be parceled and sold individually at a profit.

Think of it this way... How many current collectors need everything you are offering? Probably none. Most existing collectors already have some of these items and just need a few for their own collection. They are not going to pay for an entire collection for a handful of things they may want. Selling as a collection dramatically decreases the number of potential buyers.

The only way to sell an entire collection at maximum value is to find someone new to the hobby and hope they want to go all in and purchase the entire set at once. It seems unlikely to find one of these, let alone the two needed to bid against each other.

Secondly, framed items are always a tough sell. Tastes in framing vary and many collectors just want the 8x10 unframed.

In my view, the rule of thumb is this:

• To maximize return - sell individually
  
• To minimize your work - sell as a collection.

posted 06-23-2014 05:53 PM               

The 25-30k price was obviously not for any individual photo, but for all of them combined.

As for the framing, I know tastes differ. The reason I mentioned that was to let any responder know that all the photos are well taken care of.

posted 06-23-2014 06:11 PM               

Personal experience, I came across a binder of 40 shuttle autographs (and one Mercury autograph). Total cost: $70.