by Maxine Carter-Lome, publisher

Three portrait photographs of the Apollo 11 crew members—Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins

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Ask anyone over the age of 60 to name a significant memory and many will say they recall watching the Apollo 11 moon landing on July 16, 1969, when NASA Astronaut Neil Armstrong made history, along with his fellow spacemen Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins.

With the 55th anniversary of the landing this year, there’s a surge in interest by collectors for space memorabilia from the Golden Age of Space (1950s-1970s) who want their own piece of history. Think equipment, photographs, and autographs.

In September 2012, the U.S. government introduced a bill to give former NASA astronauts full rights of ownership over mementos they had amassed during their missions. NASA employees-all 400,000 of them at the time of the landing-were also able to acquire Apollo souvenirs when the program ended.

Since then, the value of Space Age collectibles, especially associated with the Apollo 11 program, has gone sky high with auction houses from Julien’s to Heritage, RR Auction, and Sotheby’s holding dedicated auctions.

Here are 11 recent examples of the value of Apollo 11’s enduring legacy (prices include buyers premium):

1. In January 2024, three portrait photographs of the Apollo 11 crew members—Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins—hand-signed by each of them, matted and framed together with NASA and mission badges, and a replica moon landing plaque went up for auction at Julien’s Auctions for $9,100 (estimated value: $300-$500).

A NASA flight suit from Apollo 11 astronaut Michael Collins,

Wally Schirra’s Apollo 11 commemorative Omega Speedmaster Professional gold wristwatch

2. Listed as “A Complete Summary of the Entire Mission, From Launch to Splashdown,” a Summary Flight plan from the Apollo 11 Flight Plan, with the original Apollo 11 Flight Plan covers, brought in more than $800,000 at the Sotheby’s Buzz Aldrin-themed auction on June 24, 2022. Buzz Aldrin scrawled “Flown to the Moon” and his signature in blue ink on the front cover.

3. A NASA flight suit from Apollo 11 astronaut Michael Collins, said to be worn in the days and months following his return to Earth with the Apollo 11 mission in July 1969, sold at auction for $62,000 in December 2023. The suit was removed from his personal locker just six months after the historic flight following his retirement from NASA in January 1970.

4. A silk American flag flown on both of Michael Collins’ space missions, Apollo 11 and Gemini 10, signed and certified by Michael Collins and from his personal collection, sold for $300,000 at Heritage in December 2022. Signed directly on the flag in black ink: “Carried aboard Gemini X. a world altitude record in 1966 and to the moon on the first lunar landing, Apollo XI, July 1969. Michael Collins Gemini X PILOT, APOLLO XI CMP”

5. Buzz Aldrin’s Apollo 11 jacket sold for $2,772,500 at Sotheby’s in July 2022. Aldrin wore this coverall jacket throughout his spaceflight during the 1969 Apollo 11 moon mission. The white coat includes the Apollo 11 mission patch and the letters “E. Aldrin” for the astronaut’s name, Edwin Aldrin.

6. Wally Schirra’s Apollo 11 commemorative Omega Speedmaster Professional gold wristwatch created in celebration of the first moon landing, sold for $1.9 million as part of a space exploration-focused online sale organized by RR Auction in October 2022. Also included was a document package from the Omega Museum and a letter of authenticity penned by Schirra’s wife, Jo, stating in part that the timepiece was part of her late husband’s collection.

7. Apollo 11 Lunar surface-flown American flag, carried to the lunar surface on Apollo 11’s Lunar Module Eagle, sold for $44,291 at an RR Auctions in October 2022. This 12” x 7.5” flag was accompanied by a handwritten letter of provenance from former NASA Production Control Engineer William R. Whipkey, reading in full: “This American flag (12” x 7 ½”) was flown on Apollo 11 to the lunar surface aboard Lunar Module #5, Eagle. This flag was given to me by the crew upon their return and has been in my possession ever since.” Whip-key was responsible for purchasing the items that were carried on the Apollo missions, including flags foreign and domestic.

8. An Apollo lunar boot overshoe, the first flight-configured lunar overshoe, S/N 029, used in training for the Apollo 11 mission, sold for $62,500 in 2020 through RR Auction. This extremely rare Apollo A7L lunar overshoe was manufactured by International Latex Corporation (ILC) in Dover, Delaware, and used for Apollo 11 evaluation and training exercises by NASA Engineer/Test Subject Jackie Mays in late June 1969.

9. Apollo 11 LM Systems 69-page Activation Checklist, including hand-written annotations Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong jotted on it during the mission, sold for $567,000 through Sotheby’s. The first mission to land on the moon, Apollo 11 needed a 69-page checklist just to document the state of the lunar module Eagle as it prepared to land on the moon.

10. Yellowed with age, this set of three large, double-sided cue cards is individually signed and transcribed with “Flown to the lunar surface on Apollo XI/Buzz Aldrin.” The crew of Apollo 11 used this detailed checklist of crew procedures for their moonwalk. They include instructions for spacesuit removal, rock sample storage, and jettisoning of any excess equipment. The cue-card set sold for over $350,000 at a recent Sotheby’s auction.

11. An Apollo 11 lunar module water dispenser / fire extinguisher sold for $327,600. The water dispenser looks a bit like a metallic water gun. It was designed to dispense measured amounts of hot or cold water. The astronauts used it to rehydrate their meals and drinks and to extinguish fires. Both Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong used it during the Apollo 11 crew’s lunar stay. They could squirt water directly into their mouths, too, according to Aldrin’s accompanying letter.