Apollo 11 Felt-Tip Pen That Saved Moon Landing Sells for $857,600 at Auction

A silver plastic Duro Rocket pen used by Buzz Aldrin to fix a broken circuit breaker on the Apollo 11 lunar module sold at Sotheby's for $857,600, exceeding pre-sale estimates.

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A historic artifact from the Apollo 11 mission — the felt-tip pen that helped avert disaster during the first moon landing — fetched $857,600 at a Sotheby's auction on 15 July 2026.

The pen, a Duro Rocket brand model made of silver plastic and showing visible dents, was used by astronaut Buzz Aldrin to activate a broken circuit breaker switch. The switch was essential for powering the ascent engine that would lift Aldrin and Neil Armstrong off the lunar surface and back to the command module.

The lot also included the broken piece of the circuit breaker itself. Both items came from Aldrin's personal collection.

Ahead of the sale, auctioneers had estimated the pen would sell for between $800,000 and $1.2 million. The final price of $857,600 fell within that range, with five bidders competing for the item.

During the mission, Aldrin radioed Mission Control to report the problem with the circuit breaker. "The reason I'm asking is because the end of it appears to be broken off," he said. "I think we can push it back in again. I'm not sure we could pull it out if we pushed it in, though."

The pen was dried out by the time it went under the hammer, but its historical significance drove strong interest from collectors.