Science and Technology Autographs and an Enigma Machine to Auction

RR Auction's December Science & Technology sale chronicles the history of scientific advancement in the 20th century, boasting a broad array of important autographs, artifacts, hardware, objects, and ephemera.

The auction opens with memorabilia from the career of Otto Berg, a pioneering space scientist who experimented with the V-2, conducted important research on cosmic dust, and had an experiment deployed on the moon during Apollo 17.

Highlight's from the collection include a V-2 Rocket Gyroscope, possibly a prototype or a test unit. Berg became a pioneer in rocket science as a participant in early experiments that employed V-2 rockets captured from the Germans after World War II. (Estimate: $25,000+)

Among the other Otto Berg-related lots, nearly 50 lots in all, is a 7-foot-tall Aerobee Rocket Nose Cone, German V-2 Rocket Nose Cone Tip, a Flight spares of modified rocket cameras—as used to capture some of the first high-altitude imagery of Earth, 'Earth from Space' 16mm and 35mm Film Reels— used to create the iconic first color image of Earth from space.

Other auction highlights include:

* an original Apple-1 Computer. The sought-after functional, high-grade Apple-1 'Byte Shop' computer is hand-numbered by Steve Jobs. This computer was restored to its original operational state by Apple-1 expert Corey Cohen. The Apple-1 is not only a marvel of early computing ingenuity but the product that launched one of the world's most valuable and successful companies. (Estimate: $375,000+)

* a WWII-era Enigma Machine. Ultra-desirable, three-rotor Enigma I electromechanical cipher machine built for the German military by Heimsoeth and Rinke in Berlin in 1943. It features an ebonite plugboard on the front, which was exclusive to the German armed forces and exponentially increased the complexity of the code. This version of the Enigma is sometimes referred to as the Heeres Enigma. As a functional, war-dated example of the German military's Enigma machine, this piece is truly a marvel of technological and WWII history. (Estimate: $200,000+)

* autographs of Charles Darwin, Nikola Tesla, Albert Einstein, and Steve Jobs.

A special section dedicated to robots includes a massive mechanical man—the 8-foot-tall giant Italian robot 'Gygan,' built by Dr. Fiorito in 1957, along with a sizable assortment of toy robots from photographer and artist Andres Serrano's collection is also featured.

The Science and Technology Auction from RR Auction will conclude on December 15. More details can be found online at www.rrauction.com.