Press headline on Yuri Gagarin’s space flight. The photo shows people in front of a display case of the newspaper “France-Soir” in Paris in April 1961, intently reading the headline about Yuri Gagarin’s historic space flight.

Scene: Two men stand with their backs to the camera, absorbed in the large headline announcing the first manned space flight. Additional passersby may be gathered around the display case.

Newspaper headline: Likely in large letters a sensational news item such as “Il revient du ciel” (He is back from the sky).

Significance: The first human space flight was a world sensation that also aroused great interest in Western Europe, despite the Cold War.

The photo symbolizes the international attention for Gagarin’s space flight and shows how the beginning of the space age fascinated people worldwide.