Space Exploration

Sotheby’s pioneered Space Exploration sales with the groundbreaking Russian Space History sales of 1993 and 1996. Under the leadership of Cassandra Hatton, the category was reintroduced in 2017, and has set and reset the world records for most valuable space artifacts ever sold, firmly cementing Sotheby’s as the world market leader in this category.

In 2021, the Science & Popular Culture department was established and later developed into a full team including Senior Specialist Adam Stackhouse, Associate Specialist Matthew Hoffarth, and Cataloguer Emily Olsen. Together, the team has decades of diverse experience across the space history and scientific artifact market.

Some of the records set by the Sotheby’s Science team include the Inflight Coverall Jacket Buzz Aldrin wore to the Moon and back on Apollo 11 (realized $2,800,000 USD) and the Vostok 3KA-2 Spaceship (realized $2,882,500 USD). Sotheby’s also holds the additional distinction of having sold the only known documented samples of the moon available for private ownership, twice; first in 1993, and then again in 2018 (sold 855,000 USD).

In 2022, the Buzz Aldrin: American Icon sale became the most valuable auction ever held in the category, resetting the world record set by Sotheby’s in the Space Exploration sale commemorating the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11 in 2019.

Auctions include a wide variety of material from both the American & Soviet space programs suited for both new and seasoned collectors - from flown mission artifacts and hardware, items from the personal collections of astronauts & cosmonauts, space photography & signed photographs, maps & charts, engineering models, spacesuits, and much more.