Object Details
Physical Description
Square balloon basket with wood base and protruding, rounded corners. Metal frame, covered in suede trim, attaches to each corner and meets at the top burner. Aluminum liquid petroleum gas (lpg) tanks are strapped to each interior corner. Interior also features suede bag, champagne bag, and wooden panel with compass, altimeter, and speed indicator.
Summary
Today most balloon baskets are still made of wicker and leather. To decrease weight, aluminum has replaced wood in the basket frames. In 1971, Mike Adams
designed this rugged wicker basket. The sculptured corners safely house the fuel tanks while steel suspension cables are woven into the sides, adding rigidity.
Long Description
A Modern Hot Air Balloon Basket
This basket, constructed of wicker, aluminum and leather, is a product of Mike Adams Balloon Loft of Peachtree, Georgia. Production of Adams hot air balloons began in the early 1970s and continued until Adam's death in 1985. The company had a sterling reputation for technical advances in envelope design, and baskets that combined beauty and functionality. More than two hundred years after the invention of the balloon, the finest baskets are still hand-crafted of wicker and leather.
Gift of Mike Adams Balloon Loft
Credit Line
Donated by Mike Adams' and Balloon Loft
Inventory Number
A19761156000
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
Type
CRAFT-Balloon
Materials
Wicker
Leather
Suede
Wood
Aluminum
Steel
Non-Magnetic metal alloy
Paint
Cotton
Rubber
Dimensions
3-D: 119.4 × 116.8 × 254cm (3 ft. 11 in. × 3 ft. 10 in. × 8 ft. 4 in.)
Country of Origin
United States of America
See more items in
National Air and Space Museum Collection
Location
National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC
Exhibition
Thomas W. Haas We All Fly
Data Source
National Air and Space Museum
Link to Original Record
Record ID
nasm_A19761156000