Urnerboden (Switzerland), 27 July 1901

Name: Einstein in the mountains
Brand: Urnerboden (Switzerland), 27 July 1901
Price: 3800.00 GBP
Availability: SoldOut

Price Realised GBP 4,750

Estimate

GBP 1,000 - GBP 1,500

Closed: 9 May 2018

Loading details

Try our

Einstein in the mountains

Urnerboden (Switzerland), 27 July 1901

Price Realised GBP 4,750

Closed: 9 May 2018

Price Realised GBP 4,750

Closed: 9 May 2018

Details Lot Essay Related Articles More from

Albert Einstein (1879-1955).

Autograph picture postcard signed ('Albert') to his mother, Pauline, [postmarked Urnerboden, 27 July 1901].

In German, two lines of verse and a number of annotations in pencil on and below a photographic image of the Märcherstöckli crag, 139 x 92mm; autograph address to his mother in Mettmenstetten.

Maja Winteler-Einstein (1881-1951) – her husband Paul Winteler (1882-1952) – Besso family.

Published in Schulmann, Kox, Janssen, Illy (eds). The Collected Papers of Albert Einstein (Princeton University Press, 1998), vol. 8B, p.990.

Please note this lot is the property of a consumer. See H1 of the Conditions of Sale.

Conditions of Sale
FAQs
This lot is offered by Christie Manson & Woods Ltd

Brought to you by

A Christie's specialist may contact you to discuss this lot or to notify you if the condition changes prior to the sale.

Lot Essay

A jokey postcard from the Swiss mountains. Einstein writes a verse couplet which suggests that weather conditions for his Alpine holiday may not have been ideal:

'Reich mir Herrn Patris Segen
Viel Hagel, Nebel und Regen'.

.

In the same spirit, he annotates various features on the mountain with names such as 'devil', 'daughter', 'Angel Gabriel' and 'mother-in-law'.

1901 was a year in which everything seemed held in suspense for Einstein: he had been granted Swiss citizenship on 21 February, and his first scientific paper was published on 1 March; but he spent much of the rest of the year applying unsuccessfully for jobs, and oscillating between his parental household and his future wife, Mileva Marić. He had however spent the July holiday, as usual, with his mother in Mettmenstetten (outside Zurich), before going walking in the high Alps at Urnerboden.

Post Lot Text

This lot has been imported from outside the EU for sale and placed under the Temporary Admission regime.
Import VAT is payable at 5% on the hammer price. VAT at 20% will be added to the buyer’s premium but will not be shown separately on our invoice.

Please note that if this lot is to be shipped outside of the UK an export licence will be required. A period of 2 weeks should be allowed for the application to be processed.