NEW YORK, Oct. 30 (Reuters) – Three lunar-matter enthusiasts will have the chance to own three rich space particles while what Sotheby's describe as the only "moon rocks" known and legally available for the world. Private property was announced at auction in November.
Sotheby's announced on Tuesday that he hoped the fragments, salvaged from the moon by a Soviet space mission in 1970, could bring in between $ 700,000 and $ 1 million at the auction in New York on the 29th. November.
The pieces – a fragment of basalt, similar to most volcanic rocks on Earth, and surface debris known as the regolith – are sold by an unidentified private American collector who bought them in 1993.
Sotheby's said in a statement that they had been sold for the first time in 1993 by Nina Ivanovna Koroleva, widow of the former director of the Soviet space program Sergei Pavlovich Korolev.
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Blood Moon dazzles viewers in the longest lunar eclipse of the 21st century
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A "Blue Blood Super Moon" rises during a lunar eclipse in Cairo, Egypt on July 27, 2018. REUTERS / Amr Abdallah Dalsh
Astronomy students adjust their telescope to observe the lunar eclipse of a blood moon at Marina South Pier, Singapore, on July 28, 2018. REUTERS / Edgar Su
A "Blue Blood Super Moon" rises during a lunar eclipse in Cairo, Egypt on July 27, 2018. REUTERS / Amr Abdallah Dalsh
Ankara, Turkey – July 27: composition of several images of the moon shows the different stages of the longest eclipse of the "blood moon" of the century in Ankara, Turkey, on July 27, 2018. (Photo by Ali Balikci / Agence Anadolu / Getty Images)
A "Blue Blood Super Moon" rises during a lunar eclipse in Cairo, Egypt on July 27, 2018. REUTERS / Amr Abdallah Dalsh
General view during a lunar eclipse of the "Super Blue Blood Moon" rising in Cairo, Egypt on July 27, 2018. REUTERS / Amr Abdallah Dalsh
A "Blue Blood Super Moon" rises during a lunar eclipse in Cairo, Egypt on July 27, 2018. REUTERS / Amr Abdallah Dalsh
A lunar eclipse of a full "blood moon" rises behind the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on July 27, 2018. REUTERS / Christopher Pike
A "Blue Blood Super Moon" rises during a lunar eclipse in Cairo, Egypt on July 27, 2018. REUTERS / Amr Abdallah Dalsh
An astronomy enthusiast looks through a pair of binoculars to see the lunar eclipse of a blood moon at Marina South Pier in Singapore on July 28, 2018. REUTERS / Edgar Su
A lunar eclipse of a full "blood moon" rises near the town of Oloitoktok along the Kenya-Tanzania border on July 27, 2018. REUTERS / Thomas Mukoya
Astronomy enthusiasts are waiting to see the lunar eclipse of a blood moon at Marina South Pier in Singapore on July 28, 2018. REUTERS / Edgar Su
A "Blue Blood Super Moon" rises during a lunar eclipse in Cairo, Egypt on July 27, 2018. REUTERS / Amr Abdallah Dalsh
A lunar eclipse of a full "blood moon" rises behind the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on July 27, 2018. REUTERS / Christopher Pike
A "blood moon" is observed during a total lunar eclipse at Thymari, near Athens, Greece, on July 27, 2018. REUTERS / Alkis Konstantinidis
People set up telescopes to observe the lunar eclipse at Tsim Sha Tsui in Hong Kong on July 28, 2018. – The longest eclipse of the "blood moon" of this century began on Friday, coinciding with the 39th anniversary of the lunar eclipse. Nearest approach to Mars for 15 years to treat skygazers the globe to an exciting celestial show. (Photo by Philip FONG / AFP) (The photo credit should read as follows: PHILIP FONG / AFP / Getty Images)
This image shows the full moon during a "blood moon" eclipse seen from the city of Oloika in Magadi, Kenya, on July 27, 2018. – The longest "blood moon" eclipse of this century has started on July 27, coinciding with the closest approach to Mars. in 15 years to offer skygazers around the world a thrilling celestial show. (Photo of SIMON MAINA / AFP) (Photo credit must match SIMON MAINA / AFP / Getty Images)
This photo taken on July 27, 2018 shows the moon during the total lunar eclipse, in the Mediterranean coastal city of Netanya. – The longest "blood moon" eclipse of this century began on July 27, coinciding with the closest approach to Mars in 15 years: giving skygazers around the world a thrilling celestial show. Unlike a solar eclipse, viewers will not need any eye protection equipment to observe the rare display. (Photo by JACK GUEZ / AFP) (Photo credit should match JACK GUEZ / AFP / Getty Images)
Van, Turkey – July 27: The full moon rises behind silhouettes of people before the full-scale phase of the longest-standing "Blood Moon" eclipse in Van, Turkey on July 27, 2018. (Photo by Ozkan Bilgin / Anadolu Agency / Getty Images)
People gather while waiting for the sunset and the appearance of the "Blood Moon" in Vienna, Austria on July 27, 2018. – The total moon eclipse "Blood Moon" is the longer of the 21st century. (Photo by GEORG HOCHMUTH / APA / AFP) / Austria OUT (photo credit should match GEORG HOCHMUTH / AFP / Getty Images)
VAN, TURKEY – JULY 27: The full moon rises behind the silhouette of a man taking a selfie on a bike before the total phase of the longest eclipse of the century "blood moon" van, in Turkey , July 27, 2018. (Photo by Ozkan Bilgin / Anadolu Agency / Getty Images)
Ankara, Turkey – July 27: composition of several images of the moon shows the different stages of the longest eclipse of the "blood moon" of the century in Ankara, Turkey on July 27, 2018. (Photo by Ercin Top / Agency Anadolu / Getty Images)
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The fragments, ranging in size from about 0.079 in x 2 mm) to 0.039 in x 0.039 in (1 x 1 mm), were presented as a gift on behalf of the Soviet Union in recognition of: the contributions of his late husband to the program.
Sotheby's stated that the particles, covered with a Russian plate and covered with a glass plate under glass, are both the only known lunar specimen to have been officially offered to a private party and documented provenance available at private property.
Collectors pay huge sums for space exploration artifacts. Last year, Sotheby's sold a zipper bag with the inscription "Lunar Sample Return" covered with moon dust and used by Neil Armstrong for the first human mission on the moon in 1969 , priced at $ 1.8 million.
This sale took place after NASA lost a legal battle to recover the artifact from a private collection.
Most of the other known samples taken from the moon remain with the two entities that collected them: the United States during Apollo missions 11-17 and the Soviet Union via unmanned missions Luna-16, Luna-20 and Luna-24.
A number of other countries have received samples of Apollo 11 and Apollo 17 business from the Nixon administration and, in most countries, the law prohibits the transfer of such gifts to individuals.
Particles sold in November were recovered in September 1970 by Luna-16, who drilled a hole in the surface to a depth of 13.8 inches (35 cm) and extracted a central sample.
They are packed under glass under an adjustable lens and labeled "АСТИЦЫ ГРУНТА ЛУНЫ-16". [SOIL PARTICLES FROM LUNA-16]. "
Tests on similar samples showed that the bits dated back to 3.4 billion years ago. (Edited by Jill Serjeant, Edited by Kim Coghill)
