Description
The following text appears in upper case raised lettering on the moon (capitalization and punctuation have been added here for readability):
©7643 Manning’s Moonball. Actual relief of moon’s surface. Diameter 2,160 miles. Reason man has seen only one side of Moon: It rotates on its axis in 27 days and takes 27 days to circle the earth. Surface temp on side we see 212°. Side away from Sun 300° below. It’s 239,000 miles from Earth. Highest mts. over 6 miles. Deepest crater Newton 29,000 ft. Greatest distance from Earth 252,000 miles. Escape on Moon 1.5 to Earth 7.
Frank Manning was a colorful character with wide-ranging interests and experiences. He was born in Yazoo City, Mississippi, but spent most of his adult life in New Orleans, Louisiana. As a sideline to his main career as a financial investigator, he was a scientist and inventor. Manning served in the U.S. Navy and later joined the merchant marines, where he learned about astronomy and lens grinding. As an inventor, he assembled two of the world’s largest mobile telescopes and manufactured the Manning Moonball, which mapped the topography of the moon on a sphere. He also patented and manufactured the Manning Tasty Shrimp Fish Lure. After leaving the merchant marines, he served as a financial investigator, eventually serving as Chief Investigator for the Department of Revenue for the State of Louisiana and then Chief Investigator for the Louisiana Department of Justice before retiring. He and his wife also collected art and antiques.
Condition: Generally very good the apparently original silver paint a bit worn with blue, orange and yellow underpainting showing through. The ball is rubber so indents upon pressure as one that is slightly deflated.
References:
“Manning’s Moonball.” University of Toronto Scientific Instruments Collection. 2019. https://utsic.utoronto.ca/wpm_instrument/mannings-moonball/ (29 September 2022).
Mitchell, Patricia B. “Frank W. Manning.” New Orleans Community Standard. January 1975. Online at: https://www.mitchellspublications.com/cs/3/pe/ (29 September 2022).