On psychoanalysis and his 'important work' - photo 1
On psychoanalysis and his 'important work' - photo 2

On psychoanalysis and his 'important work'

Lot 17
16.07.2020 06:00UTC +00:00
Classic
Starting price
£ 6 000
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUnited Kingdom, London
Buyer Premiumsee on Website%
Archive
The auction is completed. No bids can be placed anymore.
Archive
ID 370006
Lot 17 | On psychoanalysis and his 'important work'
Estimate value
£ 7 000 – 9 000
Albert Einstein (1879-1955).

Autograph letter signed ('Papa') to his younger son Eduard ('Tetel'), Caputh (near Berlin), 8 October 1932.

In German. Two pages, 290 x 190mm. Provenance: Christie's, 7 June 2000, lot 32 (part).

On his son's breakdown, psychoanalysis and his 'important work'. Eduard has been committed to an asylum for treatment of schizophrenia, and his father attempts to comfort him with an anecdote of the friend of an acquaintance in Pasadena who was institutionalised for depression after the war, and chose to remain in his asylum even after the conclusion of his treatment, 'as he claimed that there could be no better refuge for an intellectual worker. And there he remains even today in cheerful spirits and the best of health'. Eduard is especially not to worry about his father's testamentary arrangements: 'I will never mention them again'. Einstein is leaving for California in December, and hopes that Eduard can come to see him before he goes – he cannot unfortunately move himself, as he needs to remain with his assistant [Walther Mayer] 'because of important work'. Nevertheless, he holds out the prospect of taking Eduard to America with him in the following year: 'This year it would not only be too expensive but too unsettled for you, as I have arduous commitments in California. But next year I am going to Princeton near New York for five months...'. In the meantime, he is passing the time peacefully in his beloved country home at Caputh: 'I spend my days in work and sailing, without bothering myself much with the great world'. Eduard should strive for an equal sense of detachment: his father recommends that he read Hans Christian Andersen – he himself has been reading the second part of Goethe's Faust, though without much pleasure. Einstein's stepdaughter Ilse has been following a long course of psychoanalysis, and Eduard must promise to teach him about the subject if he comes: 'I promise to keep a straight face'.

This was Einstein's last year in Europe. By October 1933 he was indeed in Princeton, not on a five-month visit but in permanent exile after the Nazi seizure of power: he was never to see his son again. Eduard Einstein (1910-1965) was first diagnosed with schizophrenia in 1930, and was to spend much of the rest of his life at the Burghölzli clinic outside Zurich.

Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
8 King Street, St. James's
SW1Y 6QT London
United Kingdom
Preview
24.06.2020 – 16.07.2020
Phone +44 (0)20 7839 9060
Email
4FQ.AYGKAGLUQ@FO3G@
Buyer Premium see on Website
Conditions of purchaseConditions of purchase

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.