[Apollo 8] FIRST EARTHRISE: rare unpublished color photograph of the first Earthrise witnessed b...

[Apollo 8] FIRST EARTHRISE: rare unpublished color photograph of the first Earthrise witnessed by humans William Anders, 21–27 December 1968 Printed 1968. Vintage chromogenic print on fibre-based Kodak paper [NASA image AS8-14-2384]. With 'A Kodak Paper' watermark on the reverse (issued by NASA Kennedy Space Centre, Florida). 19 x 24 cm. (7.5 x 9.5 in.) Historical context William Anders took three photographs during the first Earthrise ever witnessed by human beings, including this rare and striking image, which was not widely published by NASA after the mission. The Apollo 8 astronauts first saw Earthrise during their fourth revolution around the Moon. As Frank Borman and James Lovell, in awe of the sight, urged him to capture the moment (see mission transcript), Anders—who had been photographing the lunar surface with a 250mm telephoto lens—quickly took three photographs. The first was a black-and-white image [NASA image AS8-13-2329], followed by two colour photographs. While one of the colour Earthrise images [NASA image AS8-14-2383] was widely published by NASA and became one of the most iconic images in history, this equally stunning colour photograph [NASA image AS8-14-2384] remains far rarer. 'When I looked up and saw the Earth coming up on this very stark, beat-up lunar horizon, an Earth that was the only colour that we could see, a very fragile-looking Earth, a very delicate looking Earth, I was immediately almost overcome by the thought that here we came all this way to the Moon, and yet the most significant thing we're seeing is our own Home Planet, the Earth.' William Anders (Poole, p. 2) Footnotes: From the mission transcript (photograph taken T+075:49:09 after launch): 075:48:42 Borman: Well, take several of them. 075:48:43 Lovell: Take several of them! Here, give it to me. 075:48:44 Anders: Wait a minute, let's get the right setting, here now; just calm down. Calm down, Lovell. 075:48:49 Lovell: Well, I got it ri - Oh, that's a beautiful shot. 075:48:54 Lovell: 250 at f/11. 075:49:07 Anders: Okay. 075:49:08 Lovell: Now vary the - vary the exposure a little bit. 075:49:09 Anders: I did. I took two of them. 075:49:11 Lovell: You sure we got it now? 075:49:12 Anders: Yes, we'll get - we'll - It'll come up again, I think. Watch more CLICK HERE: A New Look at NASA's Apollo 8 'Earthrise' For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com For further information about this lot please visit the lot listing