GROTHENDIECK, Alexandre (1928-2014) - photo 1
GROTHENDIECK, Alexandre (1928-2014) - photo 2
GROTHENDIECK, Alexandre (1928-2014) - photo 3
GROTHENDIECK, Alexandre (1928-2014) - photo 4
GROTHENDIECK, Alexandre (1928-2014) - photo 5

GROTHENDIECK, Alexandre (1928-2014)

Lot 131
09.07.2025 10:30UTC +01:00
Classic
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CHRISTIE'S
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUnited Kingdom, London
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ID 1450518
Lot 131 | GROTHENDIECK, Alexandre (1928-2014)
Estimate value
£ 8 000 – 12 000
GROTHENDIECK, Alexandre (1928-2014)
A General Theory of Fibre Spaces With Structure Sheaf. National Science Foundation Research Project on Geometry of Function Space. Report No. 4. University of Kansas: 1955.
Exceptionally rare first edition of Grothendieck’s paper which revolutionized the study of geometric spaces. We are able to locate just one other copy (University of Michigan).

Alexander Grothendieck is widely regarded as one of the most influential mathematicians of the twentieth century, who fundamentally reshaped modern mathematics by introducing deep, unifying concepts that bridged disparate fields such as algebraic geometry, topology, logic, and number theory. His pioneering work established new foundations for algebraic geometry through the theory of schemes, revolutionized the understanding of geometric and logical structures with topos theory, and provided powerful tools like étale cohomology that enabled breakthroughs such as the proof of the Weil conjectures.

The present paper, written and published while Grothendieck was at the University of Kansas on a National Science Foundation research grant, is apparently the first of his works to be issued in English. By introducing a unifying framework that transcends traditional boundaries between fields like topology, differential geometry, and algebraic geometry, this paper laid the groundwork for Grothendieck’s later breakthroughs including his celebrated Tôhoku paper (1957). Prior to Grothendieck’s work, the study of fiber spaces was largely restricted to settings where the underlying spaces and their symmetries were sufficiently regular—typically locally trivial bundles with constant structure groups. His introduction of the structure sheaf framework allowed for the systematic organization and gluing of local data even in highly singular or non-locally trivial contexts. By formalizing this approach through the language of sheaves and their cohomology, he provided a powerful and flexible toolkit for addressing complex geometric and algebraic problems.

Mimeographed typescript (275 x 214mm). Title page, [ii] pp. (table of contents), 100pp (minor stains to title, some creasing to bottom corner, final leaf lightly stained at upper edge). Original red printed paper covers (spine repaired with black tape, some stains, corner of lower cover torn away).
Auction house category:Books and manuscripts, Printed books
Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
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