The jacket of Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin, a prominent astronaut, worn by him on the famous Apollo 11 mission, was sold at an auction for $2.7 million USD, the equivalent of nearly $4 million AUD, according to KidsNews.
The white jacket, embellished with an American flag, NASA’s initials, a patch for the Apollo 11 mission, and the name “E ALDRIN,” was worn by the astronaut during the journey, in 1969, to and from the moon.
The jacket was a piece of a personal collection of items Buzz Aldrin sold in auction house Sotheby’s in New York in the United States on July 26.
“The exceptionally rare garment was chased by multiple bidders for almost 10 minutes before selling to a bidder on the phone,” Sotheby’s said, according to KidsNews.
Aldrin, 92, is the only living member of the Apollo 11 flight crew behind the historic moon landing. Astronaut Neil Armstrong was the first to step onto the moon’s surface, followed by Aldrin, with Michael Collins staying in the command module, called Columbia.
“After deep consideration, the time felt right to share these items with the world, which for many are symbols of a historical moment, but for me have always remained personal mementos of a life dedicated to science and exploration,” Aldrin said last week. “I wore this in-flight coverall jacket … in the command module Columbia, on our historic journey to the moon and back home again during the Apollo 11 mission.”
The spacesuits worn on the moon by Aldrin and Armstrong are part of the National Air and Space Museum’s collections in Washington.
The entire auction collected $8.2 million USD ($11.8 million AUD) for 68 items sold, including $819,000 USD (nearly $1.2 million AUD) for a flight plan.
The white jacket, embellished with an American flag, NASA’s initials, a patch for the Apollo 11 mission, and the name “E ALDRIN,” was worn by the astronaut during the journey, in 1969, to and from the moon.
The jacket was a piece of a personal collection of items Buzz Aldrin sold in auction house Sotheby’s in New York in the United States on July 26.
“The exceptionally rare garment was chased by multiple bidders for almost 10 minutes before selling to a bidder on the phone,” Sotheby’s said, according to KidsNews.
Aldrin, 92, is the only living member of the Apollo 11 flight crew behind the historic moon landing. Astronaut Neil Armstrong was the first to step onto the moon’s surface, followed by Aldrin, with Michael Collins staying in the command module, called Columbia.
“After deep consideration, the time felt right to share these items with the world, which for many are symbols of a historical moment, but for me have always remained personal mementos of a life dedicated to science and exploration,” Aldrin said last week. “I wore this in-flight coverall jacket … in the command module Columbia, on our historic journey to the moon and back home again during the Apollo 11 mission.”
The spacesuits worn on the moon by Aldrin and Armstrong are part of the National Air and Space Museum’s collections in Washington.
The entire auction collected $8.2 million USD ($11.8 million AUD) for 68 items sold, including $819,000 USD (nearly $1.2 million AUD) for a flight plan.
