NASA’s first operational spacesuit lives on in a doll-size replica. Management at B.F. Goodrich probably could have handed out paperweights. But when the company’s spacesuit division finished designing and constructing the iconic silver suits worn by the Mercury 7 astronauts, key staff received something unexpected: a three-foot-tall doll wearing a scaled-down copy of the real Mercury spacesuit. In the world of space collectibles, the dolls are a rarity. Only nine of the suit-clad dolls were made: one for each of the seven Mercury astronauts, one for B.F. Goodrich’s spacesuit product manager, and one for the chief suit engineer. One of the dolls ended up with us here at the National Air and Space Museum. Learn more at the link in our bio. #ASQ