The Cyprus lunar sample displays are part of two

commemorative plaques A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, or in other places referred to as a historical marker, historic marker, or historic plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, typically attached to a wall, stone, or other ...

consisting of tiny fragments of Moon specimens brought back with the

Apollo 11 Apollo 11 (July 16–24, 1969) was the American spaceflight that first landed humans on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and lunar module pilot Buzz Aldrin landed the Apollo Lunar Module ''Eagle'' on July 20, 1969, at 20:17 UTC, a ...

and Apollo 17 lunar missions. These plaques were given to the people of the

Republic of Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

by United States President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was t ...

as goodwill gifts.

Description

Apollo 11

Apollo 17

History

An international mystery of how the Cyprus goodwill Moon rock was offered for sale on the

black market A black market, underground economy, or shadow economy is a clandestine market or series of transactions that has some aspect of illegality or is characterized by noncompliance with an institutional set of rules. If the rule defines the ...

begins in 1960. During a coup of 1974 the Presidential Palace burned. The Cyprus "Moon rock" plaque from Apollo 17 was considered lost at that time. Subsequent information revealed that the display was never actually given to the Cyprus government, rather was kept at the US embassy in Nicosia during the 1974 coup d'état (

Turkish invasion The 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, code-named Operation Peace Spring ( tr, Barış Pınarı Harekâtı) by Turkey, was a cross-border military operation conducted by the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) and the Syrian National Arm ...

), which caused a delayed presentation of the plaque. But American diplomatic personnel left the island and the display went missing, showing up on the black market years later, in the hands of the son of a previous US diplomat. NASA reported in May 2010 that the

Office of Inspector General In the United States, Office of Inspector General (OIG) is a generic term for the oversight division of a federal or state agency aimed at preventing inefficient or unlawful operations within their parent agency. Such offices are attached to ma ...

recovered the Apollo 17 plaque and are preparing to re-gift it. According to

Robert Pearlman Robert Zane Pearlman (born January 14, 1976) is an American space historian and the founder and editor of collectSPACE, a website devoted to news and information concerning space exploration and space-related artifacts and memorabilia, especiall ...

, the whereabouts of the Cyprus Apollo 11 goodwill lunar display are unknown.

Description

Apollo 11

Apollo 17

History

See also

References

Further reading