First Soviet Cosmonauts, Superb Photo Signed by 9 Russian Space Pioneers

Fantastic glossy photograph signed by nine Soviet cosmonauts from the Vostok and Voskhod Missions, 9.25" x 7.5". Purple press stamp at verso. Unevenly cut left edge. Some very minor ink smudging and light surface wear. In overall near fine condition.

Signed in Russian Cyrillic by: Yuri Gagarin (1934-1968), Vostok 1, the first man in space; Konstantin Feoktistov (1926-2009), Voskhod 1; Valery Bykovsky (1934-2019), Vostok 5; Valentina Tereshkova (b.1937), Vostok 6, the first woman in space; Alexei Leonov (1934-2019), Voskhod 2, the first man to walk in space; Pavel Belyayev (1925-1970), Voskhod 2; Andriyan Nikolayev (1929-2004), Vostok 3; Pavel Popovich (1930-2009), Vostok 4; and Gherman Titov (1935-2000), Vostok 2 and Voskhod 2.

The Soviet Union launched its Vostok space program in 1961, conducting six missions and achieving many firsts. Selection and training of cosmonauts began in 1959. The first candidates were male, between 25 and 30 years of age, within specific height and weight parameters, and physically fit. They endured a battery of tests that measured physical and psychological endurance, as well as technical skills. Most had previously served in the Soviet Air Force. Of more than 200 candidates, only 20 were chosen.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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