Albert Einstein handwritten letter auctioned in Jerusalem
A handwritten letter by legendary physicist Albert Einstein about one of his groundbreaking theories sold in Jerusalem on Tuesday for more than $100,000 as part of an auction of valuable documents.
Einstein Photo: Orren Jack Turner via Wikimedia Commons.
The 1928 letter, penned by Einstein to a mathematician in Berlin about the formalization of the “Third State of the Theory of Relativity,” was purchased by an anonymous buyer for $103,700.
The document included a second note written by Einstein on the back of the envelope, refining his thinking.
Though a hefty sum, a letter Einstein wrote on the secret of happiness was purchased in Jerusalem for $1.56 million in October, after being valued at $8,000. In June 2007, a letter by Einstein about God and religion was sold for nearly $210,000.
The German-born Einstein was a celebrated figure in Israel and even offered the presidency by Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion in 1952, though turned the offer down. He served as a nonresident governor of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem until his death on April 18, 1955.
(JNS)
Einstein hated the cult of personality that grew up around him. He would have been horrified by the prices being paid for his letters.
Lets hope the buyer loans or donates it to a museum so all can view it.