Italy. (ca. 1969) Grand Orient of Italy Award Medal. Gold. Awarded to Bro. Edwin (Buzz) Aldrin. Mint State.
32 mm, .750 fine. 14.8 grams, 11.1 grams AGW. Obv: seal of the grand orient of Italy, a radiant sun shining down on several masonic symbols, framed by the legend GRANDE ORIENTE D'ITALIA AN:.V:.L:.5805 around and a periphery of 28 stars around the legend. Rev: engraved TO BRO. EDWIN / (BUZZ) ALDRIN / FIRST MASON / ON THE MOON, hallmarked 750 and 195111 at 6 o'clock. Edge: plain. Housed in an emerald green leather case with functional spring clasp. The interior is plush emerald green and gold silk with no markings within. Affixed to the top of the case is a sticker from a past auction, denoting it as LOT NO. / AD0070 / PIECE NO. / 050. The Grand Order of Italy is an Italian Masonic Grand Lodge founded in 1805 which remains in existence today. While astronaut Neil Armstrong bears the title of the first man to set foot on the Moon, many individuals celebrate Aldrin as being the first mason to do so. Though the distinction may seem immaterial to the uninitiated, it is a point of pride among freemasons still today. For Aldrin, freemasonry was an important component of his life. He was a member of Montclair Lodge (144) in New Jersey, and later moved to Clear Lake Lodge (1417) in Seabrook, Texas. Aldrin also reached the 33rd degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of the Southern Jurisdiction of the United States, of which he took the insignia with him on board the spacecraft, claiming for the Moon the masonic jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Texas.
From the Wendy and Harris Lefkon Collection.