"I told him he would have to get in touch with Rosalind Franklin, and/or with Maurice..." - photo 1

"I told him he would have to get in touch with Rosalind Franklin, and/or with Maurice..."

Lot 125
27.01.2023 10:00UTC +00:00
Classic
Sold
$ 20 160
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUnited Kingdom, London
Buyer Premiumsee on Website%
Archive
The auction is completed. No bids can be placed anymore.
Archive
ID 887903
Lot 125 | "I told him he would have to get in touch with Rosalind Franklin, and/or with Maurice..."
Estimate value
$ 6 000 – 9 000
CRICK, Francis (1916-2004). Typed letter signed (“Francis”) to Leonard Hamilton, Cambridge, 15 October 1954.

One page, recto and verso, 242 x 198mm (light spot towards bottom), three words in manuscript. On blue Air Mail paper, with typed addresses of Hamilton and of Crick on the verso.

Mentioning both Maurice Wilkins and Rosalind Franklin, regarding the publication of X-ray photographs of DNA in Scientific American. Crick writes to explain to his colleague in New York that the lack of acknowledgment of him in the recent article he wrote for Scientific American (“The Structure of the Hereditary Material,” 1 October 1954) was “really not my fault.” Crick continues, “The Editor rang me up at Woods Hole, and suggested that there should be some [pictures]. I told him he would have to get in touch with Rosalind Franklin, and/or with Maurice, whose address I gave them. That was the last I heard of it. I only had galley proofs, and the first time I knew there were any X-ray pictures (or saw any of the illustrations) was when I opened the Scientific American a week or so ago. I suppose Maurice did not put in an acknowledgement to you because he thought I would.”

Meaty letter from Francis Crick to a collaborator, still in the relatively early days after the great discovery and, including Crick, mentioning three of the four discovers. This letter typifies the jockeying for acknowledgement that continues even 70 years on. Dr. Hamilton provided DNA samples for photography in Franklin and Wilkins’ lab.
Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
8 King Street, St. James's
SW1Y 6QT London
United Kingdom
Preview
13.01.2023 – 27.01.2023
Phone +44 (0)20 7839 9060
Email
4FQ.AYGKAGLUQ@FO3G@
Buyer Premium see on Website
Conditions of purchaseConditions of purchase

More from Creator

The discovery of the structure of DNA
The discovery of the structure of DNA
$5 500
Francis Crick (1916-2004)
Francis Crick (1916-2004)
£3 000
American travel plans
American travel plans
$4 000
"Masses of arrears of work..."
$4 000
The discovery of the structure of DNA
The discovery of the structure of DNA
$8 000
Cash my check or it will bounce
Cash my check or it will bounce
$1 000
The template of genetic replication
The template of genetic replication
$8 000
"The X-ray data which Jim and I used was almost entirely Rosalind Franklin’s measurements of the dimensions of the two forms, A and B"
$4 500

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.
?>