Medal - Gemini 9 Thomas Stafford and Eugene Cernan
Medal - Gemini 9 Thomas Stafford and Eugene Cernan
€2.00
Location
Italy
Year
1970-1975
Type
Commemorative medal
Composition
Silver (.925)
Weight
25 g
Diameter
38 mm
Thickness
2.1 mm
Shape
Round
Technique
Milled
Orientation
Medal alignment ↑↑
Edge
Reeded
Period
Notice
Reference(s)
Obverse description
The obverse features conjoined right-facing busts of Thomas P. Stafford (foreground) and Eugene A. Cernan (background), depicted in NASA Gemini pressure suits. The figures are rendered in high relief with refined attention to facial structure and flight suit details, including collar ridges and layered insulation stitching.
Obverse lettering
THOMAS STAFFORD ✸ EUGENE CERNAN
(curved along the upper rim)
✸ U.S.A. ✸ (curved along the lower rim)
Obverse script
Latin
Reverse description
Reverse commemorates the Gemini 9A mission, highlighting both spacecraft maneuvering with the Agena Target Vehicle and astronaut Gene Cernan’s extravehicular activity (EVA). The primary image features the Gemini spacecraft in orbit, depicted at a descending angle. Cernan is shown performing an EVA tethered to the spacecraft, with his suited figure arching over its hull. Below, the Agena docking target vehicle is illustrated in approach configuration. Surrounding the spacecraft and astronaut are scattered eight-pointed stars and a crescent moon, reinforcing the celestial theme. Within the lower exergual region, the medal bears a trio of hallmarking elements struck directly into the field: an oval “925” silver fineness mark, a lozenge-shaped Italian State Mint assay mark identifying Milan as the district of issuance, and a small oval maker’s mark of currently unidentified attribution.
Reverse lettering
MANOEUVRING WITH TARGET VEHICLE AGENA
(curved along the upper rim)
CERNAN’S EXTRAVEHICULAR ACTIVITY (curved along the upper rim)
✸ GEMINI 9 ✸ (curved along the lower rim)
✸ JUNE 3RD 6TH 1966 ✸ (curved along the lower rim)
Reverse script
Latin
Engraver
assay mark identifying Milan as the district of issuance, and a small oval maker’s mark of currently unidentified attribution. Script: Latin Lettering: MANOEUVRING WITH TARGET VEHICLE AGENA (curved along the upper rim) CERNAN’S EXTRAVEHICULAR ACTIV
