Lot 60611 – 1971 Apollo 15 flown moon cover

1971, Apollo 15 flown moon cover, endorsed at top left “Landed at Hadley Moon, July 30, 1971″ and signed by the astronauts Dave Scott and Jim Irwin, further signed at lower left corner by Dave Scott, Al Worden and Jim Irwin, with the reverse showing a notarized inscription that reads: “This is to certify that this cover was onboard the Falcon at the Hadley-Apennine, Moon, July 30–August 2, 1971,” and is notary stamped and signed Mrs. C. B. Carsey with her notary embossed seal. Also on the reverse in the lower left corner it’s signed Sieger with handwritten serial number “35.” The cover is franked with 1969 10c « First man on the moon » tied by Kennedy Space Center pictorial machine cancel, with 1971 Space Achievement pair below cancelled on arrival by « USS Okinawa » cancel. Small fault at left, very rare with few known from the « Sieger » covers.

Note: Prior to the flight of Apollo 15, Herman E. Sieger, a German stamp dealer cut a deal with the crew to carry 100 covers to the moon in return for $7’000 each, on the condition that they not be sold until after the end of the Apollo program. The crew carried his covers, along with 300 of their own. Despite the agreement not to sell the items, the stamp dealer immediately began offering them to interested parties, leading to a Congressional investigation and a decision by NASA to suspend Scott, Worden, and Irwin from flight duty. This is one of those 100 covers, identified by the rarely seen handwritten astronaut inscription on the front and the notarization on the reverse.