The Blue Marble is an iconic photo of Earth that was taken by Apollo 17 astronauts on July 17, 1972. It appears in vivid color on the Proof.999 fine-silver dollar and the Proof.999 fine-gold $100 coin.
This photo was taken on the last manned mission to the Moon. The famous photograph was taken by the astronauts on the way to the moon.
About the photo
The Blue Marble is a photograph taken at 18,000 miles from the surface of the Earth.
This photo shows the Earth’s southernmost tip, from the Mediterranean Sea to Antarctica. This was the first opportunity for an Apollo mission to capture the south polar glacier cap. The entire African coastline is visible in the clear view, as well as the Arabian Peninsula (Madagascar) and Madagascar. To the east and north, you can see the Asian mainland.
The slightly gibbous Earth looked and felt like a glass marble to the astronauts. It is often shown with Antarctica at its bottom, which is the traditional map perspective. However, from the astronauts’ actual view, Antarctica was at the top.
The Blue Marble was a popular image that appeared on newspaper covers around the world at the time.
According to Talisman Coins, the distributor of the coins: “It has since been even more significant, as it has given mankind a new, humble perspective on its own fragility, and that of Earth within the otherwise lifeless vacuum of space.”
Design details
Each coin’s obverse features Queen Elizabeth II in a crowned right-facing profile. Ian Rank Broadley sculpted her portrait with pearl earrings and a tiara.
Each coin’s reverse depicts two Apollo 17 astronauts, complete with cameras, exploring lunar surface in front of their lunar lander module.
Three shooting stars are visible above Earth to represent Apollo 17 astronauts who were the last to reach lunar orbit: Eugene Cernan (mission commander); Harrison Schmitt (lunar module pilot); and Ronald Evans (command module pilot).
The coins show Cernan, Schmitt and Evans on the lunar surface. Evans, however, remained in orbit in the command module.
Each coin is protected by a protective outer cardboard box in full color. Each coin comes with a unique, numbered certificate proving its authenticity.
The silver coin measures 38.6mm in diameter and weighs 31.135g. Each one retails for $169.95 U.S. and has a limit of 750 mintage.
The 31.106 gram gold coin measures 38.6 millimeters wide and weighs 31.106 grams. The mintage limit for this coin is 150 and it retails at $2,999.95 U.S.
