VOSTOK SPACE ROCKET MODEL.
Glass reinforced plastic and metal model, 58 inches tall, on wood and metal stand, together 62 inches tall. 1:25 scale, NPO Energia, 1990s.
A very highly detailed model made for exhibition purposes by NPO Energia, the Russian company that manufactured the actual Vostok. Vostok was a family of rockets derived from the Soviet R-7 Semyorka, designed for the human spaceflight program. The rocket was used to launch the first artificial satellite, Sputnik, and the first manned spacecraft in history on April 12, 1961, carrying Yuri Gagarin on board. It had 20 main engines clustered in fours which developed a million pounds (453,000 kg) of thrust. The Vostok series included six launches over a two-year period. The final two missions in June 1963 by Vostok 5, followed two days later by Vostok 6, carrying Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space, were notable in that the two spacecraft traveled at times only 3 miles (4.8 km) apart, setting the stage for future space dockings between orbiting vehicles.
