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Einstein paper heads for auction tonight – a bargain in the offing?

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Albert Einstein's best known award in the present day was Time magazine's Person of the Century. "He was the embodiment of pure intellect, the bumbling professor with the German accent, a comic cliche in a thousand films," Time wrote. "Instantly recognizable, like Charlie Chaplin's Little Tramp, Albert Einstein's shaggy-haired visage was as familiar to ordinary people as to the matrons who fluttered about him in salons from Berlin to Hollywood. Yet he was unfathomably profound - the genius among geniuses who discovered, merely by thinking about it, that the universe was not as it seemed."
Albert Einstein's best known award in the present day was Time magazine's Person of the Century. "He was the embodiment of pure intellect, the bumbling professor with the German accent, a comic cliche in a thousand films," Time wrote. "Instantly recognizable, like Charlie Chaplin's Little Tramp, Albert Einstein's shaggy-haired visage was as familiar to ordinary people as to the matrons who fluttered about him in salons from Berlin to Hollywood. Yet he was unfathomably profound - the genius among geniuses who discovered, merely by thinking about it, that the universe was not as it seemed."
Each year, Forbes magazine produces a listing of the world's highest-paid dead celebrities for the previous 12 months. We've condensed 22 years of Forbes' painstaking research into one chart to emphasize the remarkable power of Albert Einstein's personal brand. Apart from being the only scientist in the top 100 in any year, he's the only person on the list without a body of work that can be licensed or monetized in some way. His earnings are entirely from the licensing of his name and image – Albert Einstein's brand values are arguably the most pristine and sustainably valuable in history. Einstein.biz is the official licensing site
Forbes/NewAtlas.com
The "The Essence of the Theory of Relativity" manuscript is a remarkable insight into one of the greatest scientific minds of the 20th century. In the piece, Einstein offers an explanation of his theory of relativity, which is widely considered the foundation of modern physics. The article begins with a general introduction before delving into the "Special Theory of Relativity" and "General Theory of Relativity." Einstein also includes several equations and sketches a small graph to illustrate his ideas.
The "The Essence of the Theory of Relativity" manuscript is a remarkable insight into one of the greatest scientific minds of the 20th century. In the piece, Einstein offers an explanation of his theory of relativity, which is widely considered the foundation of modern physics. The article begins with a general introduction before delving into the "Special Theory of Relativity" and "General Theory of Relativity." Einstein also includes several equations and sketches a small graph to illustrate his ideas.
The "The Essence of the Theory of Relativity" manuscript is a remarkable insight into one of the greatest scientific minds of the 20th century. In the piece, Einstein offers an explanation of his theory of relativity, which is widely considered the foundation of modern physics. The article begins with a general introduction before delving into the "Special Theory of Relativity" and "General Theory of Relativity." Einstein also includes several equations and sketches a small graph to illustrate his ideas.
The "The Essence of the Theory of Relativity" manuscript is a remarkable insight into one of the greatest scientific minds of the 20th century. In the piece, Einstein offers an explanation of his theory of relativity, which is widely considered the foundation of modern physics. The article begins with a general introduction before delving into the "Special Theory of Relativity" and "General Theory of Relativity." Einstein also includes several equations and sketches a small graph to illustrate his ideas.
The "The Essence of the Theory of Relativity" manuscript is a remarkable insight into one of the greatest scientific minds of the 20th century. In the piece, Einstein offers an explanation of his theory of relativity, which is widely considered the foundation of modern physics. The article begins with a general introduction before delving into the "Special Theory of Relativity" and "General Theory of Relativity." Einstein also includes several equations and sketches a small graph to illustrate his ideas.
The "The Essence of the Theory of Relativity" manuscript is a remarkable insight into one of the greatest scientific minds of the 20th century. In the piece, Einstein offers an explanation of his theory of relativity, which is widely considered the foundation of modern physics. The article begins with a general introduction before delving into the "Special Theory of Relativity" and "General Theory of Relativity." Einstein also includes several equations and sketches a small graph to illustrate his ideas.
The "The Essence of the Theory of Relativity" manuscript is a remarkable insight into one of the greatest scientific minds of the 20th century. In the piece, Einstein offers an explanation of his theory of relativity, which is widely considered the foundation of modern physics. The article begins with a general introduction before delving into the "Special Theory of Relativity" and "General Theory of Relativity." Einstein also includes several equations and sketches a small graph to illustrate his ideas.
Einstein was the center of attention in almost any environment.
Albert Einstein's Pipes and Menorah Pipe Holder were sold for US$125,000 at RR Auction on September 25, 2021
RR Auction
Albert Einstein's jacket appeared on the cover of Time magazine
Albert Einstein's jacket was the subject of a feature article by Christie's
For those seeking something different in the way of genius memorabilia, there's also Einstein's Swiss silver open-face pocket watch (estimated at US$20,000 to US$26,000) and Einstein's childhood building blocks (estimated at US$6,500 to US$10,500)
A letter from Albert Einstein to Franklin D. Roosevelt fetched US$2,096,000 in 2002. It was no ordinary note, becoming arguably the single most influential letter penned during the 20th century
Einstein's famous letter to philosopher Eric Gutkind, penned from Princeton University in 1954 in the year before his death, sold at auction for £207,600 (US$404,147) in May, 2008. In 2012, the letter was auctioned on eBay, fetching US$3,000,000
In 2010, X-rays of Einstein's skull sold at a Julien's auction for US$38,750, a signed impression of Albert's handprints has sold for US$85,000 and a print of the image of Einstein sticking his tongue out, from his 72nd birthday party, sold at auction for US$56,250 in January, 2015
Newspapers across the world picked up the story of Lord Rutherford measuring the distortion of light through an eclipse and Einstein, his most unlikely theory vindicated, became a global celebrity overnight. These clippings are from The New York Times dated November 10, November 16 and December 3, 1919.
The New York Times
Celebrity is rare in the scientific domain. Just a handful of scientists have achieved international celebrity status, with only Stephen Hawking, Richard Feynman, Niels Bohr, Carl Sagan, Sir David Attenborough, Tim Berners-Lee and perhaps Buckminster Fuller achieving any widespread public recognition as scientists during their lifetime
Albert Einstein's Theory of General Relativity was presented to the Prussian Academy of Sciences over four lectures in November 1915, and published on December 2, 1915. The general relativity theory built on the insights of Einstein's first theory of relativity, the special relativity theory from 1950. This 72-page autograph manuscript, written in German, in either Prague or Zurich in 1912, is one of only three of Einstein's early papers on the theory of relativity known to survive. This is the earliest and the longest of these, and was the only one never to have been published. The other early relativity manuscripts are the 11-page "Zum Relativitäts-Problem" ("On the Relativity Problem") written in 1914 and published in Scientia 15 (1914), which is believed to be in private hands; and the 45-page "Die Grundlagen der allgemeinen Relativitätstheorie" written in 1916 and published in the Annalen der Physik 49 (1916), now in the Schwadron Collection in the Hebrew University, Jerusalem. This document fetched US$1,155,000 at a Sotheby's auction in 1987 and went to auction again in 1997, with an estimated price of US$4-6 million. A high bid of US$3.3 million did not secure the sale
Another childhood toy worth US$13,000
Einstein's childhood building blocks were estimated to sell for between £5,000 and £8,000 when they went to auction in 2016, but exceeded the estimate handsomely, fetching £62,500 ($82,564)
When Einstein's pocket watch went to auction, it fetched more than 10 times its estimate. Predicted by Christie's to sell for between £15,000 and £20,000, it sold for £266,500 (US$336,541.53)
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A six-page autograph manuscript by Albert Einstein entitled "The Essence of the Theory of Relativity" is being auctioned tonight and scientific voyeurs might care to watch the fun as the heavy hitters come out to play. The auction will be live on the internet, and the last few minutes is where the fun starts and you can see the world's most monied institutions and investors go big or go home.

Einstein has an astonishing "multiplication factor" at auction, and he has penned two of the most valuable documents in auction history (US$6.5 million in 1943 and US$13.0 million in 2021), yet with less than 24 hours before the hammer falls, the bidding sits at just US$110,000. Could there be a bargain to be had?

We can count seven Einstein documents that have sold for more than a million dollars previously (see our gallery for images and links).

Einstein famously threw out the handwritten drafts of his relativity thesis at each subsequent iteration, then the final masterpiece when it had been published. Once the world recognised his genius, any paper, object or belonging that Einstein had touched began climbing in value and continues to do so to this day. At auction, his record is in the same league as Marilyn Monroe, Steve McQueen, John Lennon, Elizabeth Taylor and Michael Jackson ... all names with massive box office while they were alive and a mystique that adds another zero or two onto any price.

Einstein destroyed the hand-written manuscript of "The Theory of Relativity" when the paper was published in 1905, but made another hand-written copy in 1943 to raise money for the US war effort. The paper was purchased by the Kansas City Life Insurance Company for US$6.5 million at a 1944 auction and donated to the US Library of Congress.

Though he was German, Einstein emigrated to the United States prior to WW2 and was so opposed to the Nazi regime that he made another hand-written copy of his original theory of relativity manuscript in 1943 to raise money for the United States’ war effort. It sold at auction for US$6.5 million in 1944, making it the most valuable document ever sold at auction at that time. That manuscript now resides in the US Library of Congress and would dwarf his next most valuable document – the $13.0 million manuscript co-authored with his friend and long-time collaborator on the theory of relativity, Michele Besso.

Christie's Exceptional Sale in Paris on November 23, 2021 produced some remarkable results, the most valuable being the €11.6-million (US$13-million) sale of a 54-page manuscript by Albert Einstein and Swiss engineer Michele Besso
Christie's/New Atlas

By all available measures, Albert Einstein has become one of the strongest personal brand names in history. Star quality is a rare and seemingly intangible commodity. It's the x-factor in many large business equations from the film industry box office through to brand ambassadors. Unlike the real world of physics, where conservation of energy applies, some people have manifested the ability to create value from a touch, a Midas touch, even after they are dead.

Each year, Forbes magazine produces a listing of the world's highest-paid dead celebrities for the previous 12 months. We've condensed 22 years of Forbes' painstaking research into one chart to emphasize the remarkable power of Albert Einstein's personal brand. Apart from being the only scientist in the top 100 in any year, he's the only person on the list without a body of work that can be licensed or monetized in some way. His earnings are entirely from the licensing of his name and image – Albert Einstein's brand values are arguably the most pristine and sustainably valuable in history. Einstein.biz is the official licensing site
Forbes/NewAtlas.com

Rights clearance and licensing agency Greenlight represents the estate of Albert Einstein and is largely responsible for generating the licensing revenues that have propelled the genial scientist into the upper echelons of Forbes' top-earning dead celebrity listing, carefully maintaining Einstein's Facebook page, which has 18.5 million followers.

Greenlight also represents Andy Warhol, Marilyn Monroe, Muhammad Ali, Elvis Presley, Steve McQueen, Maria Callas, Dr Martin Luther King Jr, Charlie Chaplin, Sophia Loren, John Wayne, Thomas Edison, the Wright Brothers, Buzz Aldrin and Marvin Gaye. Quite a roster!

Just look at the names on the chart above and contemplate how valuable the Einstein name is, and how it still resonates with the public a century after he was anointed a genius. His place in that chart is earned with pure, high-density credibility and genius.

Newspapers across the world picked up the story of Lord Rutherford measuring the distortion of light through an eclipse and Einstein, his most unlikely theory vindicated, became a global celebrity overnight. These clippings are from The New York Times dated November 10, November 16 and December 3, 1919.
The New York Times

Einstein, like Copernicus and Newton, changed the foundations of all that we thought we knew. He changed our perceptions of both time and space, he proved that atoms were real, and he showed that mass and energy are the same thing. He single-handedly revolutionized every aspect of theoretical physics, and he did so while working a nine-to-five job at the Patents Office in Berne. The supreme hero giving hope to all those who work two jobs along their path in life, Einstein changed humankind after working eight hours, not to mention fighting with his mentally-ill wife.

Celebrity is rare in the scientific domain. Just a handful of scientists have achieved international celebrity status, with only Stephen Hawking, Richard Feynman, Niels Bohr, Carl Sagan, Sir David Attenborough, Tim Berners-Lee and perhaps Buckminster Fuller achieving any widespread public recognition as scientists during their lifetime

Touched by genius is a phrase oft bandied about by sports commentators, but it definitely describes the crazy-haired eccentric Albert Einstein, who has become not only science's pin-up boy, but one whose star will never set.

Einstein made a handful of discoveries that changed our understanding of the universe; his contribution will never be obscured by the clutter of time because he has a place in history alongside Nicolaus Copernicus, Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin and maybe James Watson and Francis Crick.

He changed everything before him ... and every time that a piece of his memorabilia goes to auction, we're reminded of how utterly unique Einstein is in that he is still recognized at auction a century after he became famous. Albert Einstein truly is science's rockstar.

A letter from Albert Einstein to Franklin D. Roosevelt fetched US$2,096,000 in 2002. It was no ordinary note, becoming arguably the single most influential letter penned during the 20th century

He also has a full hand of brand values – good humor, sincerity, kindness and pacifism, yet he is also the embodiment of perspective, wisdom and genius.

Einstein's famous letter to philosopher Eric Gutkind, penned from Princeton University in 1954 in the year before his death, sold at auction for £207,600 (US$404,147) in May, 2008. In 2012, the letter was auctioned on eBay, fetching US$3,000,000

The manuscript that is currently at auction is being offered by RR Auction as part of The Fine Autographs and Artifacts Auction featuring Science and Technology. The auction began on April 17, 2023 and will conclude this evening (May 10, 2023), giving bidders the opportunity to own a piece of scientific history. The Einstein essay can be found here.

The manuscript offers a simplified discussion of Einstein's theories, making them accessible to a lay audience. Before launching into an increasingly technical explanation. At the time of the article's publication, nuclear physics had come to the forefront of the public's attention with the advent of the atomic bomb in World War II. Einstein's work helped to provide a coherent explanation of his theories for the general public.

The manuscript is in fine condition, with only a minor rust mark to the first page. Accompanied by a full English translation, the manuscript is has been given an official estimate of US$350,000-plus, but a significant scientific manuscript in Einstein's handwriting is sure to attract interest from collectors and institutions alike, and we're betting that it will be a seven-figure result when the 10-minute rule finally expires tonight.

Source: RR Auction

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