(Vostok 1, 12 April 1961) Yuri Alekseevich Gagarin

Autograph manuscript speech, given to the State Commission on Space Flight just two days before the launch of Vostok I. Tyuratam (Kazakhstan)? 10 April 1961



One leaf, 11 × 8 in., 280 × 204 mm. autograph manuscript signed, in Russian, written in cursive script, 27 lines, recto only, blue-black ink on wove paper (being the blank verso of a part-sheet of printed graph paper), annotated in Russian "Speech before the state committee before launch, 10 April 1961") in blue ink at head, signed by Gagarin in blue ink at the end; creased, old manuscript calculation verso.

Autograph manuscript speech, given to the State Commission on Space Flight just two days before the launch of Vostok I. Tyuratam (Kazakhstan)? 10 April 1961 One leaf, 11 × 8 in., 280 × 204 mm. autograph manuscript signed, in Russian, written in cursive script, 27 lines, recto only, blue-black ink on wove paper (being the blank verso of a part-sheet of printed graph paper), annotated in Russian "Speech before the state committee before launch, 10 April 1961") in blue ink at head, signed by Gagarin in blue ink at the end; creased, old manuscript calculation verso.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The Columbus of the space age accepts his commission.

The original manuscript of Yuri Gagarin's speech to the state commission on the space flight, accepting his selection to be the first human being to venture beyond the earth.

"Comrade chairman, comrades, members of the state commission: I heartily thank you for trusting me to be the first man to fly into space!  It is very difficult to convey with words the feeling that your decision has caused in me.  I am glad, proud, happy — as any Soviet man would be if his motherland entrusted him with this historically significant mission. 

"I am an ordinary Soviet man, communist, grateful to the Soviet government which has decided to send me as the first one.  I consider myself to be completely prepared for the forthcoming flight.  I have studied the technology, and I know it well.  I am quite sure of its reliability.  Theoretically, I consider myself to be completely prepared for the forthcoming flight.  My health is fine.  I do not doubt the successful outcome of the flight."

Speeches at this level were not normally written by the speakers themselves.  In this speech, however, and in his later speeches, Gagarin was permitted to write his own words — except at Korolev's funeral in 1966, when there was a sense that Gagarin's own words might be too emotional, and he was given a prepared speech to read.