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Apollo 11 Hardware Auctioned Off
By Robert Pearlman
Special to SPACE.com
posted: 06:20 pm ET
28 August 2000
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auction_update_000828 (collectSPACE) A piece of Columbia, the spacecraft which carried astronauts Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins to the Moon, was sold at auction on Sunday, August 27, despite an on-going investigation by NASA. The 18.5 by 3-inch metal handrail, described by organizer Butterfields as "the only legitimate Apollo artifact that has been offered to the public," received a high bid of $34,500 (including a 15% buyers premium). 
The unknown buyer however, may not be able to keep his newest possession for very long. After being alerted to the auction by an article in the San Francisco Examiner, NASAs Office of the Inspector General launched an investigation over the legality of the sale. In an interview with SPACE.com before the auction, Samuel Maxey, the NASA assistant inspector general for investigations, expressed hope that the space agency would be able to resolve the issue before the sale proceeded. However, as of today, the case remains open. In order to proceed with the auction, NASA and the eBay-owned Butterfields reached an agreement whereas if the space agency ruled the handle was to be returned, the auction house would refund the money to the buyer. At the heart of NASAs investigation is the validity of a Memorandum of Understanding between NASA and the nonprofit International Vet Medical Foundation (IVMF). Signed in 1973, the document, which was included as part of the auction lot, allegedly assigns title to the handle to IVMF in return for a 10-year study of the metal rods radioactivity. When NASA might release their ruling is unknown. In addition to the handle, the Butterfields auction also included two pieces of LA001, the 14th confirmed Martian meteorite, which was discovered just last year. The larger of the two specimens, about one-sixth of an ounce (4.5 grams) sold for $13,800.
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