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Controversial original vintage semi-glossy 9.5 x 7 silver gelatin photograph of the moon's surface taken by Lunar Orbiter 2 in November 1966, showing a cropped view of the shadows cast by 'spires' observed at Prime Site 4. Affixed to a 16 x 18 mount, with a detailed affixed caption on the reverse, in part: "The picture is part of two framelets taken at Lunar Orbiter II prime site 4. This site is located at approximately 15° 30' east longitude and 4° 30' north latitude. These framelets were taken with Lunar Orbiter II high resolution camera and have been enlarged about 5 times. The areas shown in the picture is approximately 750 x 500 feet with the reference mark lines (white crosses) representing about 25 feet on the lunar surface. The protuberances which cast the long slender shadows are naturally occurring features on the lunar surface. The largest protuberance, located in the center of the photograph, is about 50 feet wide at its base and about 40 to 75 feet high. Precise height measurements will be possible only after ground slope measurements are made. Picture orientation is such that North is to the right and the sun is at the bottom and 11° above the horizon." Also annotated on the reverse in felt tip, "Elle, Kodak." In fine condition, with light soiling to the mount.
This photographic evidence of tall 'lunar spires' created something of a sensation among conspiracy theorists and alien hunters—perhaps these obelisks were the ruins of an extraterrestrial civilization on the moon! First recognized by William Blair, an anthropologist and member of the Boeing Company’s biotechnology unit, the tall protrusions are sometimes called the 'Blair cuspids.' These were popular material for speculative magazines throughout the 1960s and 70s, but scientists have maintained that the objects are much smaller than originally posited—the shadows in the picture are elongated due to the slope of the lunar surface.
