A signed Albert Einstein letter could be worth $30,000 if it hits its top estimate at auction in the US on April 10.
The 2-page letter is typewritten and signed in green ink with “A. Einstein”.
There is a lot of technical, scientific discussion in the 1935 letter to Einstein’s associate Cornelius Lanczos.
It was written on September 14, 1935 at the Einsteins’ rented holiday home, The White House in Old Lyme, Connecticut.
To the non specialist the contents may prove a little challenging.
Einstein writes to physicist Cornelius (Cornel) Lanczos about the theory of general relativity.
The letter, in German, contains two equations, amid a good deal of significant scientific discussion.
Einstein was on holiday at the time he wrote the letter, enjoying boating trips and a trip to Sherlock Holmes actor William Gillette’s castle.
Cornelius Lanczos was a close friend and associate of Einstein and lectured about his work in later life.
In 1935, Einstein was two-years into exile in the US. As a Jewish German he fled Hitler’s regime in 1933.
Lanczos, a Jewish Hungarian, also saw the US as a safe haven from Nazism. He later fled the US to Ireland, where he died, when his political views were subject to McCarthyist scrutiny.
Einstein is one of the very few scientists to boast celebrity status. He is also highly collectible.
A plain autograph should be valued at thousands of pounds. When it’s found on interesting documents, photographs or illustrations it can be worth many tens of thousands.
This letter, in good condition for its age, carries certified authenticity and the provenance of a 1980 sale at Sotheby’s.
This extremely interesting content may tempt institutional buyers from archival, museum or university departments to bid.
