A Bulova wrist chronograph worn by Dave Scott, the seventh person to walk on the moon, has fetched $1.6 million at an auction by Boston-based RR Auction.
Scott reached for the watch, his personal backup after his government-issued Omega Speedmaster reportedly failed, during his third and final moonwalk of the Apollo 15 mission. It can be seen on his left wrist in a photo capturing him with the American flag against the majestic expanse of Hadley Delta.
Apollo 15 was the ninth manned mission in the United States' Apollo program and the fourth to land on the moon. Beginning on July 26, 1971, and ending on August 7, it was what NASA called at the time the most successful manned flight ever achieved.
The mission’s third lunar excursion, which lasted 4 hours, 49 minutes, and 50 seconds, was heavily reliant on time expenditures, as Commander Scott, along with Lunar Module Pilot James Irwin conscientiously balanced their resources before departure, and eventual journey home. In fact, the watch exhibits significant wear from exposure while on the moon.
“We are extremely pleased with the results and honored to have been able to offer such an historically important timepiece — the only American-made watch that was worn on the surface of the Moon,” said Bobby Livingston, RR Auction's executive vice president.
The watch headlined the auction house’s Space and Aviation Auction, which brought a total of $2.6 million. It included other artifacts as the flown flight plan and roller used by Gordon Cooper on Mercury 9, which fetched $89,774.13, and an American flag carried into lunar orbit on board Apollo 8, which brought $7,136.85.
Bids for the watch reportedly soared from $475,000 to the final hammer price in a span of just five minutes. Sold to a Florida businessman who collects "one-of-a-kind items," it is believed to be the highest price ever paid for an astronaut-owned artifact. In 2001, a cuff checklist used by Charles Conrad, the third man to walk on the moon, reportedly sold for $1.3 million to a private buyer.
