This story has been making minor waves:
http://www.collectspace.com/news/news-013114a-apollo-moon-camera-auction.htmland there is an ongoing discussion at collectspace about whether this camera is genuinely a lunar surface camera or not, whether the lens and magazine are the right ones, and if it is genuine how it came to be in a private sale.
I'm not really surprised that the magazine is different - if genuine the last magazine in it was probably number 90 (the one that jammed at the end of the last EVA but was got going again to take photographs of the moon during TEC) and this obviously got developed.
I learned something - that (in the later missions at least) the Reseau plates also had a serial number on them representing the astronaut to whom they were assigned. Despite all that scouring of Apollo photos I'd never spotted them!
Irwin's was 38 and Scott's was 31. While Irwin's was known to have been brought back for examination, Scott's was supposedly left behind.
Or was it?
Magazine 88 was in use by Irwin's camera until it jammed, at which point it was transferred to Scott's. The final image in that magazine, way after TEI, shows a retreating moon and has number '31' clearly visible on it.
Likewise Cernan's camera - supposedly left on the LRV seat but actually shown to have taken photographs after the ascent module was discarded.
Would you buy it? Is it surprising that these cameras made it back?
For my money I'm not in the least bit surprised they are around. I'd bet Armstrong and Aldrin left theirs, as there were too many unknowns not to follow the mission programme to the letter, but later missions? Why not? What's a pound or two of very good camera between friends?! I think they earned their souvenirs!
