Albert Einstein (1879-1955) - photo 1
Albert Einstein (1879-1955) - photo 2

Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

Starting price
£ 100
Auction dateClassic
15.12.2023 11:00UTC +01:00
Auctioneer
CHRISTIE'S
Event location
United Kingdom, London
Archive
The auction is completed. No bids can be placed anymore.
Archive
ID 1109146
Lot 344 | Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
Typed letter signed ('A. Einstein') to Cornelius Lanczos, 112 Mercer Street, Princeton, 14 February 1955
In German. 1¼ pages, 280 x 216mm. Provenance: Sotheby's, 26 November 1980, lot 169.

A scathing letter on the intolerant and megalomaniac character of Erwin Schrödinger. Lanczos's letter saddened Einstein, but 'on the other hand I could not suppress a smile. The smile relates naturally to your disappointment over your experiences with our good friend Schrödinger. I have also had my experiences with him. He is an intuitively extraordinarily gifted man with a stormy temperament and not free from attacks of megalomania. His temperament brings him to identify himself at one time with a view A and a little later with the incompatible view B, so that one can often most strikingly refute Schrödinger with Schrödinger. A man like that cannot be tolerant and muster the necessary understanding for the independent views of others'. Einstein disapproves of Lanczos's intention to leave his position in Dublin, not least because finding a position in America where one can 'immerse oneself in problems' is not at all easy; and he urges his friend not to be too suspicious of others' attitudes towards him, even if 'it is well known that the Irish are very nationalistic ... For tradition ensures that the quiet scientist is valued as such (in Europe)'. Lanczos may curse Einstein's advice, but that 'can do no harm, as I have known and valued you for a long time now'.

Lanczos had taken over Schrödinger's post at the School of Theoretical Physics at the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies in 1952, and in spite of some early difficulties was to remain there for the rest of his life. Einstein himself was in the last months of his life: he died just over two months after the present letter.
Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
8 King Street, St. James's
SW1Y 6QT London
United Kingdom
Preview
09.12.2023 12:00 – 17:00
10.12.2023 12:00 – 17:00
11.12.2023 09:00 – 20:00
12.12.2023 09:00 – 17:00
13.12.2023 09:00 – 17:00
Phone +44 (0)20 7839 9060
Email
4FQ.AYGKAGLUQ@FO3G@
Buyer Premium see on Website
Conditions of purchaseConditions of purchase

More from Creator

A signed photograph
A signed photograph
$100
On his family's applications for U.S. citizenship
On his family's applications for U.S. citizenship
$100
Writing to Mount Wilson astronomer Gustaf Stromberg
Writing to Mount Wilson astronomer Gustaf Stromberg
$100
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
£100
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
£100
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
£100
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
£100
Supporting Austrian Jewish educator Eugenie Schwarzwald
Supporting Austrian Jewish educator Eugenie Schwarzwald
$1 500

Related terms

Frequently asked questions

First of all, you should register to be able to purchase at auction. After confirming your email address, enter your personal information in your user profile, such as your first name, last name, and mail address. Choose a lot from the upcoming auction and the maximum amount you want to place on it. After confirmation of your choice, we will send your application by e-mail to the appropriate auction house. If the auction house accepts a request, it will participate in the auction. You can view the current status of a bid at any time in your personal account in the "Bids" section.
Auctions are performed by auction houses and each of the auction houses describes their terms of auction. You can see the texts in the section "Auction information".
The results of the auction are published within a few days after the end of the auction. In the top menu of the site, find the tab "Auctions". Click on it and you will be on the auction catalog page, where you can easily find the category "Results". After opening it, select the desired auction from the list, enter and view the current status of the interested lot.
The information about the auction winners is confidential. The auction winner will receive a direct notification from the auction house responsible with instructions for further action: an invoice for payment and the manner in which the goods will be received.
Each of the auction houses has its own payment policy for the won lots. All auction houses accept bank transfers, most of them accept credit card payments. In the near future you will find detailed information for each case in the section "Auction information" on the page of the auction catalog and the lot.
Shipment of the won lot depends on its size. Small items can be delivered by post. Larger lots are sent by courier. Employees of the auction houses will offer you a wide range to choose from.
No. The archive serves as a reference for the study of auction prices, photographs and descriptions of works of art.