Dominique Ciccolella
Sale Coordinator and Expert Liaison
This auction has ended. View lot details
You may also be interested in
![[Apollo 11] BUZZ ALDRIN EXITS THE LM EAGLE FOR HUMANITY'S FIRST EXPLORATION OF ANOTHER WORLD Neil Armstrong, 16–24 July 1969 image 1](/_next/image.jpg?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimg1.bonhams.com%2Fimage%3Fsrc%3DImages%2Flive%2F2025-03%2F19%2F25639331-226-1.jpg&w=2400&q=75)
![[Apollo 11] BUZZ ALDRIN EXITS THE LM EAGLE FOR HUMANITY'S FIRST EXPLORATION OF ANOTHER WORLD Neil Armstrong, 16–24 July 1969 image 2](/_next/image.jpg?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimg1.bonhams.com%2Fimage%3Fsrc%3DImages%2Flive%2F2025-03%2F19%2F25639331-226-2.jpg&w=2400&q=75)
Lot 246
[Apollo 11] BUZZ ALDRIN EXITS THE LM EAGLE FOR HUMANITY'S FIRST EXPLORATION OF ANOTHER WORLD Neil Armstrong, 16–24 July 1969
14 – 28 April 2025, 12:00 CEST
Paris, Avenue Hoche€1,500 - €2,000
Looking for a similar item?
Our Post-War and Contemporary Art specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.
Find your local specialistAsk about this lot
Sabine Cornette de Saint Cyr
Head of Department
Chloe Mayot
Senior Cataloguer
Marion Richard
Specialist
[Apollo 11] BUZZ ALDRIN EXITS THE LM EAGLE FOR HUMANITY'S FIRST EXPLORATION OF ANOTHER WORLD
Neil Armstrong, 16–24 July 1969
Printed 1969.
Vintage chromogenic print on fibre-based Kodak paper [NASA image AS11-40-5863].
With faint traces of previous mounting and "A Kodak Paper" watermark on the reverse, numbered "NASA AS11-40-5863" in red in the top margin (issued by NASA Manned Spacecraft Centre, Houston, Texas).
20.3 x 25.4 cm. (8 x 10 in.)
Historical context
This historic Apollo 11 photograph captures Buzz Aldrin descending from the Lunar Module Eagle, 19 minutes after Neil Armstrong. Taken by Armstrong from the lunar surface, this image immortalizes one of the most iconic moments in history—the beginning of humanity's first exploration of another world.
The Eagle, adorned with its gold and black thermal insulation, dominates the frame. Aldrin, clad in his white Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU), carefully manoeuvres down the LM's porch and ladder toward the Moon's surface. His Portable Life Support System (PLSS) provides oxygen for breathing, water for cooling, electrical power, and radio communication. His boots, poised at the edge of the porch, highlight the precision required to transition safely from the spacecraft to the lunar regolith. The vast blackness of space serves as a stark backdrop, emphasizing the isolation and magnitude of this unprecedented achievement.
Printed 1969.
Vintage chromogenic print on fibre-based Kodak paper [NASA image AS11-40-5863].
With faint traces of previous mounting and "A Kodak Paper" watermark on the reverse, numbered "NASA AS11-40-5863" in red in the top margin (issued by NASA Manned Spacecraft Centre, Houston, Texas).
20.3 x 25.4 cm. (8 x 10 in.)
Historical context
This historic Apollo 11 photograph captures Buzz Aldrin descending from the Lunar Module Eagle, 19 minutes after Neil Armstrong. Taken by Armstrong from the lunar surface, this image immortalizes one of the most iconic moments in history—the beginning of humanity's first exploration of another world.
The Eagle, adorned with its gold and black thermal insulation, dominates the frame. Aldrin, clad in his white Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU), carefully manoeuvres down the LM's porch and ladder toward the Moon's surface. His Portable Life Support System (PLSS) provides oxygen for breathing, water for cooling, electrical power, and radio communication. His boots, poised at the edge of the porch, highlight the precision required to transition safely from the spacecraft to the lunar regolith. The vast blackness of space serves as a stark backdrop, emphasizing the isolation and magnitude of this unprecedented achievement.
Footnotes
From the mission transcript when the photograph was taken:
109:39:57 Armstrong: Okay. Your PLSS (Portable Life Support System) looks like it is clearing okay. Your toes are about to come over the sill. Okay. (Pause) Now drop your PLSS down. There you go; you're clear. And laterally you're good. You've got an inch clearance on top of your PLSS.
109:40:18 Aldrin: Okay. You need a little bit of arching of the back to come down. (Garbled) How far are my feet from the edge?
109:40:27 Armstrong: Okay. You're right at the edge of the porch. [...]
109:41:28 Aldrin: Okay. Now I want to back up and partially close the hatch. (Long Pause) Making sure not to lock it on my way out.
109:41:53 Armstrong: (Laughs) A particularly good thought.