Auction 78 - Rare and Important Items
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4
Auction 78 - Rare and Important Items
May 25, 2021
Opening: $8,000
Estimate: $20,000 - $30,000
Sold for: $10,000
Including buyer's premium
Autograph letter signed by German composer Richard Wagner. Tribschen, Lucerne (Switzerland), March 9, 1869. German.
The letter was sent to French writer, philosopher and musicologist, Édouard Schuré, shortly after Wagner's famous antisemitic essay, "Judaism in music", was first published under his full name (the essay has been published previously under a pen name), and a month before Wagner's opera Rienzi premiered in Paris.
In his letter, Wagner relates to his essay "Judaism in music" (which he sent his addressee together with the letter), and expresses his antisemitic worldview: "You will learn much from it [from the essay]… in particular you will see that I… am not dealing with the French public, but rather with German Jews. If you would only ask who these gentlemen in Figaro [a leading French daily newspaper] are, you will see that they all have these certain Jewish German names such as Wolf, Hirsch, Bär".
Wagner also mentions the French poet and writer, Judith Mendès (daughter of the famous novelist Théophile Gautier), whose visit in his home several month later in summer 1869 (together with her husband, French-Jewish poet Catulle Mendès) commenced their longstanding relationship. He concludes his letter by asking Schuré to convey his greetings to Mr. and Mrs. Mendès, adding: "if my letter appears in La Liberté please send me four copies of it" (presumably in reference to the letter Wagner sent Judith Mendès in February 1869 about the Rienzi opera, for publication in La Liberté; the letter was published on March 10, a day after the present letter was written).
Wilhelm Richard Wagner (1813-1883), a leading German composer in the 19th century. His works, which were considered original and revolutionary in his times, furthered the musical language of opera, and of classical music in general.
Wagner was known for his antisemitic views, which were most sharply expressed in his essay Judaism in Music (Das Judentum in der Musik) – a venomous diatribe against European Jews and their culture, describing the negative impact of Jewish culture on German culture, the artistic failure of prominent Jewish composers (especially criticizing the compositions of Mendelssohn and Meyerbeer), and the only possible solution, in his mind, for Jews: "only one thing can redeem you [Jews] from the burden of your curse… total destruction" (this declaration, which concludes the essay, is seen by some historians as one of the precursors of German antisemitism in the 1930s and 1940s).
Wagner first published this essay in 1850, under the pen name K. Freigedank (K. Freethought), after he was exiled from Germany for his part in the 1848 revolutions. Only in 1869, after he returned to Germany and became a protégé of King Ludwig II, did Wagner republish the essay in an expanded version under his full name.
[1] leaf, folded in two (three written pages). 18.5 cm. Good condition. Folding marks and minor stains.
The letter was sent to French writer, philosopher and musicologist, Édouard Schuré, shortly after Wagner's famous antisemitic essay, "Judaism in music", was first published under his full name (the essay has been published previously under a pen name), and a month before Wagner's opera Rienzi premiered in Paris.
In his letter, Wagner relates to his essay "Judaism in music" (which he sent his addressee together with the letter), and expresses his antisemitic worldview: "You will learn much from it [from the essay]… in particular you will see that I… am not dealing with the French public, but rather with German Jews. If you would only ask who these gentlemen in Figaro [a leading French daily newspaper] are, you will see that they all have these certain Jewish German names such as Wolf, Hirsch, Bär".
Wagner also mentions the French poet and writer, Judith Mendès (daughter of the famous novelist Théophile Gautier), whose visit in his home several month later in summer 1869 (together with her husband, French-Jewish poet Catulle Mendès) commenced their longstanding relationship. He concludes his letter by asking Schuré to convey his greetings to Mr. and Mrs. Mendès, adding: "if my letter appears in La Liberté please send me four copies of it" (presumably in reference to the letter Wagner sent Judith Mendès in February 1869 about the Rienzi opera, for publication in La Liberté; the letter was published on March 10, a day after the present letter was written).
Wilhelm Richard Wagner (1813-1883), a leading German composer in the 19th century. His works, which were considered original and revolutionary in his times, furthered the musical language of opera, and of classical music in general.
Wagner was known for his antisemitic views, which were most sharply expressed in his essay Judaism in Music (Das Judentum in der Musik) – a venomous diatribe against European Jews and their culture, describing the negative impact of Jewish culture on German culture, the artistic failure of prominent Jewish composers (especially criticizing the compositions of Mendelssohn and Meyerbeer), and the only possible solution, in his mind, for Jews: "only one thing can redeem you [Jews] from the burden of your curse… total destruction" (this declaration, which concludes the essay, is seen by some historians as one of the precursors of German antisemitism in the 1930s and 1940s).
Wagner first published this essay in 1850, under the pen name K. Freigedank (K. Freethought), after he was exiled from Germany for his part in the 1848 revolutions. Only in 1869, after he returned to Germany and became a protégé of King Ludwig II, did Wagner republish the essay in an expanded version under his full name.
[1] leaf, folded in two (three written pages). 18.5 cm. Good condition. Folding marks and minor stains.
Category
Letters and Manuscripts – Musicians,
Scientists and Philosophers
Catalogue
Auction 78 - Rare and Important Items
May 25, 2021
Opening: $5,000
Estimate: $10,000 - $15,000
Unsold
Letter from Albert Einstein, to Jewish-American physician Dr. Isidor W. Held. Typewritten and hand-signed by Einstein, on Einstein's blind stamped personal letterhead. [Princeton, United States], January 18, 1945. German.
The present letter was written towards the end of WWII, when Einstein was residing in Princeton, U.S.A., and discusses the idea of establishing a "supranational agency" – a global government – an idea which Einstein promoted for many years as a means to achieving world peace.
In his letter, Einstein thanks Dr. Held for the booklet he sent him, writing: "I find it to be not bad, although under the current circumstances psychologically misguided. Even if under the current circumstances the prospects of creating an effective supernational agency are indeed slight, it nonetheless seems to me quite dangerous to work journalistically to cripple such aspirations. Since, if one stops halfway, the next world war is already certain today. This is all the more the case when modern technological development evermore induces the preemptive war, as the surprise attack is far superior to the defense".
With the words "modern technological development", Einstein presumably alludes to the atomic bomb, which was by then in advanced stages of development within the top-secret Manhattan Project (the letter was written some seven months before the American atomic bombs were dropped over Hiroshima and Nagasaki). According to Einstein, in the balance of terror in which the most effective defense is a surprise attack, it is necessary to
establish an effective supranational organization which will impose peace between the nations and prevent the next war, where the new, highly destructive weapon is bound to be used (approximately six months after Einstein wrote this letter, the Charter of the United Nations – the foundational treaty of the United Nations – was signed).
Einstein's attitude towards the atomic bomb was, in certain respects, ambivalent. As a pacifist he opposed war with all his being and aspired to totally abolish the idea of a nation state, which, by its mere existence, he held, made war inevitable. Nonetheless, as a pragmatist he saw Germany's arming with nuclear weapons as a threat to humanity, and believed that the Allied powers must precede it in obtaining the atomic bomb. This line of thinking led him to sign, alongside the physicist Leo Szilárd, a letter sent in 1939 to President Roosevelt (the Einstein-Szilárd letter), informing the American administration of the latest discoveries in the field of energy generation through nuclear fission, and the military potential of this new technology, and raising the concern that Nazi Germany may be working on developing its own atomic bomb. This letter resulted in the establishment of the Manhattan Project, where the first American atomic bombs were developed. Einstein later expressed his regrets of having signed this letter. In 1946, he founded together with Szilárd the Emergency Committee of Atomic Scientists to warn the public of the dangers associated with the development of nuclear weapons, and in 1955, shortly before his death, he signed the Russell-Einstein Manifesto, which also discussed the threats posed by nuclear weapons and called for world leaders to seek peaceful resolutions to international conflicts.
Albert Einstein (1879-1955), one of the most influential physicists in the 20th century, creator of the Theory of Relativity and the one who laid the foundations for the theory of quantum mechanics; Nobel prize laureate. Einstein was born in Ulm, southern Germany, studied in Switzerland and served as professor in various universities, including the Friedrich Wilhelm University (today named Humboldt University) in Berlin. Apart from his scientific research, Einstein was involved for many years in political efforts to promote organizations committed to international cooperation, which would lead to the eradication of wars. In 1914, he signed the pacifist manifesto Aufruf an die Europäer (Appeal to Europeans), and in the 1920s he was a member of the International Committee on Intellectual Cooperation. With the Nazi rise to power in 1933, he renounced his German citizenship and settled in the United States, where he was offered a position in the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, NJ. He remained there until his death on April 18, 1955.
The recipient of the letter is Isidore William Held (1876-1947), a Jewish, Austrian-born medical doctor. Held studied in Philadelphia, Berlin and Vienna, wrote many medical monographs and translated medical works from German to English. He worked for many years as a physician in the Beth Israel hospital in New York, and was active in the local Jewish community. He was active in assisting Jewish doctors and scientists who escaped Nazi Germany to the United States, and it was presumably in that framework that he became acquainted with Einstein. After Held's passing in 1947, Einstein wrote to his widow: "As a role model for his fellow men he was the best that a human being can be".
See: Aufbau, Reconstruction, an American Weekly Published in New York, Vol. XIII – No.10, New York, Friday, March 7, 1947.
[1] leaf. 28 cm. Good condition. Folding marks. Minor marginal tears. Minor stains to lower part of leaf. Inscription on verso.
The present letter was written towards the end of WWII, when Einstein was residing in Princeton, U.S.A., and discusses the idea of establishing a "supranational agency" – a global government – an idea which Einstein promoted for many years as a means to achieving world peace.
In his letter, Einstein thanks Dr. Held for the booklet he sent him, writing: "I find it to be not bad, although under the current circumstances psychologically misguided. Even if under the current circumstances the prospects of creating an effective supernational agency are indeed slight, it nonetheless seems to me quite dangerous to work journalistically to cripple such aspirations. Since, if one stops halfway, the next world war is already certain today. This is all the more the case when modern technological development evermore induces the preemptive war, as the surprise attack is far superior to the defense".
With the words "modern technological development", Einstein presumably alludes to the atomic bomb, which was by then in advanced stages of development within the top-secret Manhattan Project (the letter was written some seven months before the American atomic bombs were dropped over Hiroshima and Nagasaki). According to Einstein, in the balance of terror in which the most effective defense is a surprise attack, it is necessary to
establish an effective supranational organization which will impose peace between the nations and prevent the next war, where the new, highly destructive weapon is bound to be used (approximately six months after Einstein wrote this letter, the Charter of the United Nations – the foundational treaty of the United Nations – was signed).
Einstein's attitude towards the atomic bomb was, in certain respects, ambivalent. As a pacifist he opposed war with all his being and aspired to totally abolish the idea of a nation state, which, by its mere existence, he held, made war inevitable. Nonetheless, as a pragmatist he saw Germany's arming with nuclear weapons as a threat to humanity, and believed that the Allied powers must precede it in obtaining the atomic bomb. This line of thinking led him to sign, alongside the physicist Leo Szilárd, a letter sent in 1939 to President Roosevelt (the Einstein-Szilárd letter), informing the American administration of the latest discoveries in the field of energy generation through nuclear fission, and the military potential of this new technology, and raising the concern that Nazi Germany may be working on developing its own atomic bomb. This letter resulted in the establishment of the Manhattan Project, where the first American atomic bombs were developed. Einstein later expressed his regrets of having signed this letter. In 1946, he founded together with Szilárd the Emergency Committee of Atomic Scientists to warn the public of the dangers associated with the development of nuclear weapons, and in 1955, shortly before his death, he signed the Russell-Einstein Manifesto, which also discussed the threats posed by nuclear weapons and called for world leaders to seek peaceful resolutions to international conflicts.
Albert Einstein (1879-1955), one of the most influential physicists in the 20th century, creator of the Theory of Relativity and the one who laid the foundations for the theory of quantum mechanics; Nobel prize laureate. Einstein was born in Ulm, southern Germany, studied in Switzerland and served as professor in various universities, including the Friedrich Wilhelm University (today named Humboldt University) in Berlin. Apart from his scientific research, Einstein was involved for many years in political efforts to promote organizations committed to international cooperation, which would lead to the eradication of wars. In 1914, he signed the pacifist manifesto Aufruf an die Europäer (Appeal to Europeans), and in the 1920s he was a member of the International Committee on Intellectual Cooperation. With the Nazi rise to power in 1933, he renounced his German citizenship and settled in the United States, where he was offered a position in the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, NJ. He remained there until his death on April 18, 1955.
The recipient of the letter is Isidore William Held (1876-1947), a Jewish, Austrian-born medical doctor. Held studied in Philadelphia, Berlin and Vienna, wrote many medical monographs and translated medical works from German to English. He worked for many years as a physician in the Beth Israel hospital in New York, and was active in the local Jewish community. He was active in assisting Jewish doctors and scientists who escaped Nazi Germany to the United States, and it was presumably in that framework that he became acquainted with Einstein. After Held's passing in 1947, Einstein wrote to his widow: "As a role model for his fellow men he was the best that a human being can be".
See: Aufbau, Reconstruction, an American Weekly Published in New York, Vol. XIII – No.10, New York, Friday, March 7, 1947.
[1] leaf. 28 cm. Good condition. Folding marks. Minor marginal tears. Minor stains to lower part of leaf. Inscription on verso.
Category
Letters and Manuscripts – Musicians,
Scientists and Philosophers
Catalogue
Auction 78 - Rare and Important Items
May 25, 2021
Opening: $1,500
Estimate: $2,000 - $4,000
Sold for: $4,000
Including buyer's premium
Autograph letter signed by Marie Curie. Written on an official postcard of the Radium Institute (Institut du Radium) of the Science Faculty of Paris (Faculté des Sciences de Paris). Paris, December 23, 1920. French.
Brief letter – invitation to Marie Curie's laboratory. Signed: "M. Curie".
Marie Curie (1867-1932), a Polish-French physicist, prominent 20th century scientist, winner of two Nobel Prizes and the first woman to be awarded a Nobel Prize.
Curie was born in Warsaw, then a part of the Russian empire, as Maria Skłodowska. Her father, a teacher of mathematics and physics, lost his position due to his support of Polish independence, and the children were raised in poverty. Unable to enroll in a regular higher education institution because she was a woman, Curie began her academic career in the Flying University – an underground educational enterprise, offering clandestine evening courses. At the age of 24, she was the first female student to be accepted to the Sorbonne, and she relocated to Paris where she resided in an attic near the university to save on travel expenses. Despite the difficulties, and her sparse knowledge of the French language, she finished her studies with distinction and earned a scholarship for chemistry research. This allowed her to begin working in the laboratory of The City of Paris Industrial Physics and Chemistry Higher Educational Institution (ESPCI), directed by the physicist Pierre Curie.
Pierre and Marie's collaboration led to one of the most important discoveries in the history of science – radioactivity. They were married in 1895. The following years were some of the most productive and important years of their scientific careers, and it was then that Marie discovered two hitherto unknown chemical elements – polonium (named after Curie's home country – Poland), and radium (named after the Latin word radius – ray of light, for its fluorescence). Despite her husband's standing, Curie was forced to conduct some of her experiments in a shed outside the laboratory, so as not to "distract the men" working in the laboratory.
In 1903, the Nobel Committee for Physics decided to award the Nobel Prize in Physics to the Curies for their research on radiation (they had originally intended to award the prize to Pierre alone, yet he refused to accept it unless they included Marie), and Curie became the first woman to be awarded a Nobel prize. Eight years later, in 1911, the Nobel Committee decided to award Curie a second prize in Chemistry, for her discovery of two elements (Curie is one of the only four Nobel laureates awarded two Nobel prizes, and the only person ever awarded a Nobel prize in two different fields).
Curie is also renowned for her contribution in the field of medicine, when she was appointed head of the Red Cross Radiology service and operated mobile X-ray units to help wounded soldiers (dubbed "petites Curies" – little Curies). Her young daughter, Irène, operated the mobile X-ray units, and was awarded a military medal for her assistance in the battlefield. She later continued her parents' research on radioactivity and won a Nobel Prize herself.
Marie Curie died in 1934, presumably from long-term exposure to radiation. Her name and story were commemorated in countless films, books, names of institutes and organizations, and in the name of an element – curium.
14X10.5 cm. Good condition. Inscriptions penciled on verso.
Brief letter – invitation to Marie Curie's laboratory. Signed: "M. Curie".
Marie Curie (1867-1932), a Polish-French physicist, prominent 20th century scientist, winner of two Nobel Prizes and the first woman to be awarded a Nobel Prize.
Curie was born in Warsaw, then a part of the Russian empire, as Maria Skłodowska. Her father, a teacher of mathematics and physics, lost his position due to his support of Polish independence, and the children were raised in poverty. Unable to enroll in a regular higher education institution because she was a woman, Curie began her academic career in the Flying University – an underground educational enterprise, offering clandestine evening courses. At the age of 24, she was the first female student to be accepted to the Sorbonne, and she relocated to Paris where she resided in an attic near the university to save on travel expenses. Despite the difficulties, and her sparse knowledge of the French language, she finished her studies with distinction and earned a scholarship for chemistry research. This allowed her to begin working in the laboratory of The City of Paris Industrial Physics and Chemistry Higher Educational Institution (ESPCI), directed by the physicist Pierre Curie.
Pierre and Marie's collaboration led to one of the most important discoveries in the history of science – radioactivity. They were married in 1895. The following years were some of the most productive and important years of their scientific careers, and it was then that Marie discovered two hitherto unknown chemical elements – polonium (named after Curie's home country – Poland), and radium (named after the Latin word radius – ray of light, for its fluorescence). Despite her husband's standing, Curie was forced to conduct some of her experiments in a shed outside the laboratory, so as not to "distract the men" working in the laboratory.
In 1903, the Nobel Committee for Physics decided to award the Nobel Prize in Physics to the Curies for their research on radiation (they had originally intended to award the prize to Pierre alone, yet he refused to accept it unless they included Marie), and Curie became the first woman to be awarded a Nobel prize. Eight years later, in 1911, the Nobel Committee decided to award Curie a second prize in Chemistry, for her discovery of two elements (Curie is one of the only four Nobel laureates awarded two Nobel prizes, and the only person ever awarded a Nobel prize in two different fields).
Curie is also renowned for her contribution in the field of medicine, when she was appointed head of the Red Cross Radiology service and operated mobile X-ray units to help wounded soldiers (dubbed "petites Curies" – little Curies). Her young daughter, Irène, operated the mobile X-ray units, and was awarded a military medal for her assistance in the battlefield. She later continued her parents' research on radioactivity and won a Nobel Prize herself.
Marie Curie died in 1934, presumably from long-term exposure to radiation. Her name and story were commemorated in countless films, books, names of institutes and organizations, and in the name of an element – curium.
14X10.5 cm. Good condition. Inscriptions penciled on verso.
Category
Letters and Manuscripts – Musicians,
Scientists and Philosophers
Catalogue
Auction 78 - Rare and Important Items
May 25, 2021
Opening: $15,000
Estimate: $25,000 - $30,000
Unsold
Wochensprüche (Weekly Sayings; published under the title "Seelenkalender" – The Calendar of the Soul), notebook handwritten by Rudolf Steiner, philosopher and founder of anthroposophy. [Switzerland? 1918-1925]. German.
The Calendar of the Soul, one of the central texts of anthroposophy, was first printed in 1912 (based on a manuscript written that year). In 1918, a second edition was published, with several variations compared to the first edition, and with a new preface by Steiner (this edition was published as part of the anthology Durch den Geist zur Wirklichkeits-Erkenntnis der Menschenrätsel). The present notebook is presumably a transcript of the second edition, including the preface. The title page and preface are signed "Rudolf Steiner". Fine, red leather binding.
The Calendar of the Soul offers a saying (Spruch in German, can also be translated as "verse" or "mantra") for each week of the year, in accordance with the seasons – altogether 52 sayings, through which the soul can experience a feeling-unison with nature. The purpose of the book is to assist in the quest of a more profound self-knowledge, which is necessary to attain higher spiritual levels. This is part of the broader objective of anthroposophy, whose aim is to draw the modern person closer to the spiritual world he lost touch with, and to help him live a freer, more ethical life.
Steiner describes the purpose of the weekly sayings in his preface to the 1918 edition: "The course of the year has its own life. With this life the human soul can unfold a feeling-unison. If the soul opens itself to the influences that speak so variously to it week by week, it will find the right perception of itself. Thereby the soul will feel forces growing within that will strengthen it. It will observe that such inward forces want to be awakened – awakened by the soul's ability to partake in the meaningful course of the world as it comes to life in the rhythms of time. Thereby the soul becomes fully aware of the delicate, yet vital threads that exist between itself and the world into which it has been born".
Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner (1861-1925), an Austrian philosopher and architect. In the early 20th century, he founded anthroposophy, a philosophy linking the spiritual man to the spiritual world. The philosophy, which applies to various areas of life – education, medicine, agriculture, architecture, and more, gained many supporters throughout the world, and from the 1960s, in Israel as well. Several anthroposophist communities exist today in Israel, in Harduf, Kiryat Tivon and elsewhere, and many anthroposophist schools operate throughout the country.
[28] leaves. 15X10.5 cm. Good condition. Stains, including some minor dampstains and ink smears. Pen inscription (in a different hand) on final leaf, "…Heidi Kind(?) 1948". Minor abrasions to spine.
The Calendar of the Soul, one of the central texts of anthroposophy, was first printed in 1912 (based on a manuscript written that year). In 1918, a second edition was published, with several variations compared to the first edition, and with a new preface by Steiner (this edition was published as part of the anthology Durch den Geist zur Wirklichkeits-Erkenntnis der Menschenrätsel). The present notebook is presumably a transcript of the second edition, including the preface. The title page and preface are signed "Rudolf Steiner". Fine, red leather binding.
The Calendar of the Soul offers a saying (Spruch in German, can also be translated as "verse" or "mantra") for each week of the year, in accordance with the seasons – altogether 52 sayings, through which the soul can experience a feeling-unison with nature. The purpose of the book is to assist in the quest of a more profound self-knowledge, which is necessary to attain higher spiritual levels. This is part of the broader objective of anthroposophy, whose aim is to draw the modern person closer to the spiritual world he lost touch with, and to help him live a freer, more ethical life.
Steiner describes the purpose of the weekly sayings in his preface to the 1918 edition: "The course of the year has its own life. With this life the human soul can unfold a feeling-unison. If the soul opens itself to the influences that speak so variously to it week by week, it will find the right perception of itself. Thereby the soul will feel forces growing within that will strengthen it. It will observe that such inward forces want to be awakened – awakened by the soul's ability to partake in the meaningful course of the world as it comes to life in the rhythms of time. Thereby the soul becomes fully aware of the delicate, yet vital threads that exist between itself and the world into which it has been born".
Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner (1861-1925), an Austrian philosopher and architect. In the early 20th century, he founded anthroposophy, a philosophy linking the spiritual man to the spiritual world. The philosophy, which applies to various areas of life – education, medicine, agriculture, architecture, and more, gained many supporters throughout the world, and from the 1960s, in Israel as well. Several anthroposophist communities exist today in Israel, in Harduf, Kiryat Tivon and elsewhere, and many anthroposophist schools operate throughout the country.
[28] leaves. 15X10.5 cm. Good condition. Stains, including some minor dampstains and ink smears. Pen inscription (in a different hand) on final leaf, "…Heidi Kind(?) 1948". Minor abrasions to spine.
Category
Letters and Manuscripts – Musicians,
Scientists and Philosophers
Catalogue