{"product_id":"apollo-17-insurance-cover-from-the-collection-of-gene-cernan-copy","title":"Apollo 17 crewsigned insurance cover - ex- Gene Cernan","description":"\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eApollo 17 Official Insurance Cover — Signed by Gene Cernan, Harrison Schmitt and Ron Evans\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAn exceptionally scarce Apollo 17 insurance cover, hand-signed by the mission’s complete crew: Commander \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGene Cernan\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, Lunar Module Pilot \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHarrison “Jack” Schmitt\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e and Command Module Pilot \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eRon Evans\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThis cover comes from the personal collection of Gene Cernan, the last person to walk on the Moon. It is accompanied by an extensive historical statement and mounted on an 8 × 10-inch notarized certificate of authenticity. The Gene Cernan signature appearing on the certificate itself is preprinted; the three signatures on the cover are original, hand-signed examples. The cover may be carefully removed from the certificate for separate display or framing.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHistorical Background\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eBefore departing on Apollo missions, astronauts signed commemorative postal covers as a form of financial protection for their families. Spaceflight was still extraordinarily dangerous, and conventional life-insurance policies were either unavailable or prohibitively expensive. In the event of a fatal accident, the families could sell the signed covers to collectors, providing an informal form of insurance.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eBecause the Apollo 17 crew returned safely, the covers were never needed for that purpose. Unlike insurance covers from several earlier missions, the Apollo 17 examples were not widely distributed after the flight. They were retained by Gene Cernan, making surviving examples particularly difficult to obtain.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOnly approximately \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e250 Apollo 17 insurance covers\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e are believed to have been produced. This limited quantity places them among the rarest crew-signed insurance covers of the Apollo program. Their scarcity parallels that of the Apollo 17 Robbins medallions, which were also produced in smaller numbers than those associated with many other Apollo missions.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Final Apollo Lunar Mission\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eLaunched on December 7, 1972, Apollo 17 was the sixth and final crewed lunar landing of the Apollo era. Gene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt explored the Taurus–Littrow Valley, while Ron Evans remained in lunar orbit aboard the Command Module \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAmerica\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe mission established several Apollo records, including the longest crewed lunar landing, the greatest distance travelled on the lunar surface and the largest quantity of lunar samples returned by a single Apollo mission. Schmitt was also the first professional geologist to walk on the Moon. When Cernan climbed back into the Lunar Module \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eChallenger\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e on December 14, 1972, he became the last human to leave footprints on the lunar surface.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan\u003eCollector Significance\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eCombining complete crew signatures, direct provenance from Gene Cernan’s personal collection, notarized documentation and a production total of only approximately 250 examples, this cover represents one of the most desirable postal artifacts associated with the final Apollo lunar landing.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eComparable Apollo 17 insurance covers have reportedly achieved prices of up to approximately \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e$6,000 at major space-memorabilia auctions\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, although values depend on condition, provenance, signature quality and prevailing market demand.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHighlights\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul data-spread=\"false\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOfficial Apollo 17 insurance cover\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHand-signed by Gene Cernan, Harrison Schmitt and Ron Evans\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFrom the personal collection of Gene Cernan\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOne of approximately 250 believed to exist on the open market - remaining 50 covers were donated to universities and institutes\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMounted on an 8 × 10-inch notarized certificate of authenticity\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eCover can be removed for separate display\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eImportant artifact from the final crewed mission to the Moon\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Been in Space","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":58341396447496,"sku":"6451","price":1295.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1490\/3832\/files\/11446.jpg?v=1785573731","url":"https:\/\/www.beeninspace.com\/products\/apollo-17-insurance-cover-from-the-collection-of-gene-cernan-copy","provider":"BEEN IN SPACE","version":"1.0","type":"link"}