Sold For $9,383
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Unique archive honoring the historic creation and use of the atomic bomb during World War II, containing over 35 signatures of notable figures from the top-secret Manhattan Project development program, and the 509th Composite Group, the special U.S. Air Force unit that conducted the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, in August 1945. The archive includes a custom-made wooden display box, 13˝ x 22˝ x 3˝, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the first atomic bombardment by the 509th Composite Group, which contains two very rare covers, one of which is signed by all 12 crew members of the Enola Gay, and the other is signed by 12 out of the 13 crewmembers of Bockscar (Philip M. Barnes, the missing 13th, is reflected elsewhere in the lot). Included with the display box is an album featuring an additional 10 signed items, including five covers and five photographs, representing notable members of the Manhattan Project, including Leslie R. Groves, Arthur H. Compton, Ernest Lawrence, Hans A. Bethe, Luis W. Alvarez, Lawrence H. Johnston, Harold M. Agnew, Norman F. Ramsey, Jr., and Klaus Fuchs.
The 509th Composite Group signatures include:
Enola Gay: Paul Tibbets; Robert A. Lewis; Jacob Beser; Wyatt E. Duzenbury; Dutch van Kirk; Joseph Stiborik; Robert R. Shumard; George Caran; Richard H. Nelson; William S. Parsons; Tom Ferebee; Morris Jeppson
Bockscar: Kermit K. Beahan; Abe M. Spitzer; Frederick L. Ashworth; Albert T. Dehart; John D. Kuharek; E. Kenneth Buckley; James Van Pelt; Jacob Beser; Fred J. Olivi; Charles W. Sweeney; Charles D. Albury; Ray Gallagher; Philip M. Barnes (signed separately, located in black binder)
In overall very good to fine condition, with varying degrees of toning, handling marks, and minor creasing.
