1962 Mercury Capsule Antenna
Watch
GUEST:
This is a piece of the antenna from the space capsule from John Glenn when he orbited the Earth. And I have it because my grandfather was the captain of the ship the Noah that picked John Glenn up out of the ocean. It's interesting because his ship was not supposed to be the one to pick him up. They had, I think, three different crews in place. And just depending on how it orbited and whether he overprojected or underprojected, and actually the ship that was supposed to pick him up was a little bit slower, and there was a big competition between them. And so my grandfather's ship and all of his crew, they were really into it and making sure that they were the fastest ones to go, and they got to pull him out, as well as the capsule out. And so he was given a piece of the antenna as a part of a thank you. And this is a recognition, a proclamation recognizing the fact that he was that ship captain. And here's a picture of my grandfather, Captain John D. Exum, with John Glenn.
APPRAISER:
That's great. This was the flight that orbited the Earth in 1962, and it was the first manned orbital flight for the United States. John Glenn was actually the third man to go into space for the United States. The ship itself is in the Smithsonian Institution.
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
So that's on display there. I did a little bit of research and couldn't find any other pieces from this particular ship ever coming up on the market. To me, what's fabulously interesting is that this was the first manned orbital that the United States ever put up there. So for all intents and purposes, John Glenn is... He is one of the most historic men in American history. The proclamation, which is right here. And you can see, it's given to the commander, John Exum. So that ties in the provenance and the history of the piece. The plaque describes exactly what it is, part of the antenna. And the photo just puts it all into one big package and ties it up, showing John Glenn on his ship after the rescue. So it's really a terrific grouping. Rule of thumb nowadays is, whatever goes up into space and comes down from space, that's part of a space flight, goes for big money.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
It really does. Generally, as an auctioneer, I always kind of put things into auction terms and then insurance terms. Conservatively, and I did speak to some of the other appraisers here, and they were very, very excited about the piece. I would probably put an auction estimate-- and again, being conservative-- at $30,000 to $50,000.
GUEST:
Oh, my goodness!
APPRAISER:
And if you're going to insure it, I would probably put an insurance value more than that, maybe at $60,000 or so. Because again, I'm finding small pieces-- knobs and handles from different flights much later-- going in the $10,000, $20,000, $30,000 range or more. So this is just a really phenomenal piece, and from one of the most important flights in space history.
GUEST:
That's pretty crazy, because until I was about 25, I used to walk past this in his hallway, and I had no idea. Didn't think anything of it.
APPRAISER:
Mm-mm.
Appraisal Details
Executive producer Marsha Bemko shares her tips for getting the most out of ANTIQUES ROADSHOW.
Value can change: The value of an item is dependent upon many things, including the condition of the object itself, trends in the market for that kind of object, and the location where the item will be sold. These are just some of the reasons why the answer to the question "What's it worth?" is so often "It depends."
Note the date: Take note of the date the appraisal was recorded. This information appears in the upper left corner of the page, with the label "Appraised On." Values change over time according to market forces, so the current value of the item could be higher, lower, or the same as when our expert first appraised it.
Context is key: Listen carefully. Most of our experts will give appraisal values in context. For example, you'll often hear them say what an item is worth "at auction," or "retail," or "for insurance purposes" (replacement value). Retail prices are different from wholesale prices. Often an auctioneer will talk about what she knows best: the auction market. A shop owner will usually talk about what he knows best: the retail price he'd place on the object in his shop. And though there are no hard and fast rules, an object's auction price can often be half its retail value; yet for other objects, an auction price could be higher than retail. As a rule, however, retail and insurance/replacement values are about the same.
Verbal approximations: The values given by the experts on ANTIQUES ROADSHOW are considered "verbal approximations of value." Technically, an "appraisal" is a legal document, generally for insurance purposes, written by a qualified expert and paid for by the owner of the item. An appraisal usually involves an extensive amount of research to establish authenticity, provenance, composition, method of construction, and other important attributes of a particular object.
Opinion of value: As with all appraisals, the verbal approximations of value given at ROADSHOW events are our experts' opinions formed from their knowledge of antiques and collectibles, market trends, and other factors. Although our valuations are based on research and experience, opinions can, and sometimes do, vary among experts.
Appraiser affiliations: Finally, the affiliation of the appraiser may have changed since the appraisal was recorded. To see current contact information for an appraiser in the ROADSHOW Archive, click on the link below the appraiser's picture. Our Appraiser Index also contains a complete list of active ROADSHOW appraisers and their contact details and biographies.
