EINSTEIN ARCHIVES OF LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN May 20, 2021 • www.RRAuction.com
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The Einstein Archives of
LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN Bid online May 13 - 20 | www.RRAuction.com
SPECIAL THANKS TO DAVID ATKATZ FOR HIS WRITING, RESEARCH, AND EXPERTISE David Atkatz received his PhD in 1979 from the Institute for Theoretical Physics, Stony Brook University, and has worked at the University of London, Universiteit Utrecht, The Rockefeller University, the University of Minnesota, UC Santa Barbara, and Skidmore College. He has been collecting historical autographs since he was fourteen— about the same time he decided to spend his life doing physics. He has continued both avocations ever since.
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Robert S. Eaton Sr. 1940–2001
LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN B
orn in Warsaw, Poland on May 17, 1871*, Ludwik Silberstein came into the world amidst an era of profound scientific progress: Maxwell had just formulated the laws of electromagnetism and Boltzmann was refining his statistical mechanics. From these arose discoveries that would shape the next century: the electromagnetic theory of light, the electron, and quantum theory. Scientists were not only seeking to further understand the world but competing in the race to offer proof. In these contests, Silberstein often played the antagonist—questioning the ‘new’ models and forcing his fellow physicists to further refine their ideas. After his education in Krakow, Heidelberg, and Berlin (where Max Planck was his professor), Silberstein taught in Italy for about twenty years before emigrating to the United States to work as an in-house physicist for Eastman Kodak in Rochester, New York. He was skilled in mathematics and physics—authoring books on vector calculus, optics, and general relativity—and fluent in several languages, serving as a translator for Max Planck and Hendrik Antoon Lorentz. His development of the Riemann–Silberstein vector played a crucial role in the modernization of Maxwell’s equations. Silberstein was a respected colleague of the best scientific minds of the era, and he corresponded frequently with many famous physicists.
Silberstein’s 1914 book, The Theory of Relativity, was one of the first English textbooks on the subject and helped to establish it as a staple of university coursework. Although is it a heavily mathematical text, Silberstein demonstrates an uncanny ability to break down complex physics into plain language, a quality that benefited him as an educator and lecturer. The work is also of interest as it documents a transition point in physical thinking—Silberstein still supported the ‘ether theory,’ which would soon be displaced by special relativity. In the 1920s, he worked with Albert A. Michelson to perform ‘ether-drift’ experiments, anticipating results that might ‘strengthen or destroy’ the theory of relativity. In the 1930s, he claimed to have found an error in Einstein’s theory, publishing a solution of Einstein’s field equations that appeared to describe a static, axisymmetric metric with only two point singularities representing two point masses—a violation of our understanding of gravity. While Silberstein was incorrect in both cases, his insistence upon subjecting Einstein’s theories to rigorous experimental and mathematical examination only served to make them stronger.
*All published data about Silberstein gives his birthdate as 1872. In his unpublished autobiography, he writes that the ‘the havoc created at home by my appearance’ caused a lengthy delay in reporting to the proper authorities. To keep the month and day correct on his birth certificate, his father waited until the one-year anniversary to document it.
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SILBERSTEIN OFTEN PLAYED THE ANTAGONIST— QUESTIONING THE ‘NEW’ MODELS AND FORCING HIS FELLOW PHYSICISTS TO FURTHER REFINE THEIR IDEAS
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EINSTEIN WAS CONCERNED WITH
THE
BIG
PICTURE THE REALLY BIG PICTURE
N
ever interested in solving this small physics problem here, or that larger one over there (although he did a bit of that, too), Einstein was concerned with the big picture. The really big picture.
“I want to know how God created this world. I’m not interested in this or that phenomenon, in the spectrum of this or that element. I want to know His thoughts; the rest are just details.”
Isaac Newton had introduced the idea of mass—a property we assign to bits of matter called particles— exerting forces on one another, and thereby changing one another’s motion. This is easy to understand when particles collide—think of pool balls on a table. But how could the Earth’s gravitational force, acting across a quarter million miles of empty space, influence the distant Moon’s motion, and, as Newton showed, thereby “keep the Moon in her orb”? How could this “action-at-a-distance” be?
Most people understand Einstein’s concept of a “unified field theory” as a joining of the theories of the gravitational and electromagnetic forces. But it was far deeper than that.
Newton simply accepted it as fact and admitted that he could offer no explanation. “Hypotheses non fingo.” I frame no hypotheses. The solution would have to wait another century and a half.
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Sometime in the 1830s autodidact British physicist Michael Faraday, while investigating magnetism, performed an experiment we all have seen in elementary school, and began to take it quite seriously. He investigated the magnetic “lines of force” which may be traced out by iron filings sprinkled on a sheet of paper resting on a bar magnet. Faraday came to believe—as we still believe today—that the entire space around a magnet was filled with an actual physical substance. The space was not empty. That substance he called the magnetic field. Fields (today we know of four—gravitational, electromagnetic, weak nuclear and strong nuclear) interact with particles, changing their motion. Particles are the sources of—they produce—the fields. A beautiful description of how things are. But not beautiful enough for Einstein. Why should there be two quite different kinds of things, particles and fields, comprising the world? Wouldn’t it be a much simpler and more beautiful universe if it were constructed of just one? For Einstein, that would be fields. And Einstein’s fields do more—much more—than just describe the electromagnetic and gravitational forces that are felt at any point in space. They are geometrical—they determine the “interval,” the geometric distance in space and time, between any two events. They define the geometry of spacetime. So, here’s Einstein’s unified field theory. There are fields, and field equations, which determine how the fields change from place-to-place and from time-totime. That’s it. No particles. Certain solutions of the field equations—certain configurations of the
fields—are “localized.” They exist in a very small region of space and vanish everywhere else. These are what we are used to calling particles. And since the field equations determine time evolution, they also determine how these “particles” change in time—how they move. What Newton called “the equations of motion” are contained in the field equations, and no longer have to be added to the theory. In the two letters that follow, Einstein considers a particular solution to his field equations—a particular metric—presented by Silberstein, and in doing so he describes in some detail this problem of expressing matter and its motion in terms of fields. Silberstein claimed that this static, axisymmetric, metric described the spacetime around two pointmasses at rest. But with neither kinetic energy, nor any other structure to hold them apart, the masses should fall together. No such solution to Einstein’s equations should exist. General Relativity must be flawed. Unconvinced by Einstein’s arguments here (and perhaps in letters which followed), Silberstein published his metric in 1935, and also brought his cause before the popular press. On March 7, 1936 the Evening Telegram of Toronto published an article titled “Fatal blow to relativity issued here.” Einstein, of course, was correct. Mathematician Hermann Weyl later showed that Silberstein’s metric contains singular structures that are responsible for holding the masses static against the attractive force of gravity.
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EINSTEIN EXAMINES A SILBERSTEIN
SPACETIME METRIC LOT 4001 ALBERT EINSTEIN TYPED LETTER SIGNED WITH HANDWRITTEN EQUATIONS ON SPACETIME (DECEMBER 17, 1933) ESTIMATE: $20,000+
TLS in German, signed “A. Einstein,” one page both sides, 8.5 x 11, December 17, 1933. Letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, looking at a particular example of a spacetime (metric) provided by Silberstein. Writing out several mathematical equations, Einstein attempts to show that the metric has a line of singularities, and it therefore cannot represent a spacetime with unsupported static point matter particles.
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A truly complete theory would be at hand only if the ‘matter’ in it could be represented in terms of fields and without singularities
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In part (translated): “I was at first very perplexed about your static example with the two masses, as I believed you that the space external to the mass points was regular. I was so much the more amazed as I had myself earlier showed that singularities already appear when calculating the second approximation. In truth, however, the solution you give on the - axis is singular, as the following consideration shows.” Einstein walks through several mathematical steps, sketching a diagram in the margin. He continues: “However, for an infinitely small circle this ratio must everywhere equal 2π at the limit, something that is precisely in this instance not the case for the x2 axis. The calculated field is therefore everywhere singular on the x2 axis. From this there follows first of all the invalidity of your example. More interesting would be the proof of the nonexistence of a static solution (whose singularities have simple polar character). I have shown this earlier at least for the second approximation (and that for a ‘correctly’ accelerated mass the singularity disappears). It therefore does seem hardly possible to doubt that the field equations contain the law of motion, hence that the hypothesis of the geodesic line is superfluous. Nevertheless, a truly complete theory would be at hand only if the ‘matter’ in it could be represented in terms of fields and without singularities.” Below, Silberstein copies his response in his own hand, signed “L. Silberstein,” demonstrating that Einstein’s proof is erroneous. It
begins: “I wish to thank y. for yr kind lett. of Dec. 17th. Your verdict, however, I am sorry to say, is quite wrong. You have inadvertently misplaced the two exponents υ and μ.” Silberstein shows this mathematically, concluding: “Against your expectation, a statical solution with two (and, similarly, 3 or more) ‘singularities of simple polar character’ does exist and, in view of its physical implications, it is imperative to deal with it in a fundamental way in order to uphold your gravitation theory.” In fine condition, with minor creasing. Silberstein has asked Einstein to consider a particular example of a static (unchanging in time) metric (a set of geometric fields), which Silberstein claims can represent the gravitational field external to two-point masses. In this letter, Einstein offers a calculation purporting to invalidate Silberstein’s claim; he proves that there are points in Silberstein’s space—other than where the two masses reside—where the field becomes infinite. These “singularities” cannot be allowed in a physical theory, as no measurable quantity can ever be infinite. As an interim measure, in the mid 1930s, Einstein was willing to consider metrics that were singular only at the mass points—Silberstein’s claim for this metric. But Einstein’s ultimate goal, as he states in his final paragraph, was to obtain “a truly complete theory [that] would be at hand only if the ‘matter’ in it could be represented in terms of fields, and without singularities.”
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THE ONLY KNOWN HOLOGRAPHIC VERSION IN PRIVATE HANDS
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Rik - ½gikR = - κTik
THE CAPSTONE OF HIS 1915 GENERAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY LOT 4002 ALBERT EINSTEIN AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED WITH GRAVITATIONAL FIELD EQUATIONS (DECEMBER 24, 1933) ESTIMATE: $60,000+
Important ALS in German, signed “A. Einstein,” four pages, 7 x 9, December 24, 1933. Lengthy handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, opening with an apology for the mistake in his last letter before offering thoughts on field theories, his ideas of how matter must be represented in them, and how the matter equations of motion must follow from the field equations. Most importantly, the letter contains the famous gravitational field equations in Einstein’s own hand—the only known privately held example. In part (translated): “I ask you to please be so kind as to pardon my mistake. It is thus true that there is a static solution with only two point singularities. What does this mean for the general theory? First of all, it is clear that the general foundation of the theory in the following sense involves the correct law of motion. The equivalence principle shows that when a mass describes a straight line (four-dimensionally) in field-free space in relation to a coordinate system for which the gμv are constant, something that is generally to be expressed in covariant form as movement in a geodesic line, this must also be the law of motion in the general field (geodesic line), in the event that only the first derivatives of the gμv of the external field enter into the law of motion.—
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The image of page 4 of this letter is not shown in full. To view the full image please go to www.RRAuction.com.
This is naturally not sufficient to provide a foundation for the law of motion. First, it is questionable whether the theory supplies the law of inertia for the field-free space; second, it is questionable whether only the first derivatives of the gμv of the external field (this last concept is difficult to grasp precisely) enter into the law of motion. A strong theory would undoubtedly have to proceed as follows: In a pure gravitational field there are no masses. Singularities are to be excluded in a field theory as a matter of principle, for when the kind of singularity is not specially determined (something that would be arbitrary and ugly in a general theory), the singularity signifies a place of lawlessness or arbitrary boundary conditions on the surface of a world-tube excluding the singularity.
pressure, velocity. In this way it is possible to complete the theory at least formally. As is well known, this leads to the correct equations of motion.”
In order to exclude singularities, the theory would have to be supplemented by means of those field variables that describe matter and among which the energy tensor Tik would have to be expressed in relation to matter. The gravitational equations then have the form Rik - ½gikR = - κTik.
Presenting his thoughts as to the requirements for a successful unified theory, Einstein states that the equations of motion must follow from the field equations; singularities are to be excluded; and, in a pure gravitational field, there are no masses. In explaining this last point in further detail, Einstein hand-writes what is generally accepted to be his greatest contribution to physics, and, perhaps, the greatest achievement of a single scientist, his gravitational field equations, the capstone of his 1915 General Theory of Relativity: Rik - ½gikR = - κTik. We know of no other example of a holographic version of these equations in private hands.
However, up to now no such complete theory, one that describes matter in a way free from singularities, has successfully been proposed. Second, it is possible, while temporarily renouncing a physically deep theory of matter, to give a kind of phenomenological (hydrodynamic) theory of matter while using the concepts of density,
Finally, again considering Silberstein’s metric, Einstein offers a short calculation bringing into question the nature of the point mass singularities that Einstein had tentatively been willing to allow, concluding: “In any case, your investigation clearly shows how careful one must be in dealing with singularities, and how empty a field theory is that allows singularities without exactly determining their character.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply at the top. In fine condition, with some minor creasing and a trivial stain below Einstein’s signature.
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“E = mc ” 2
THE WORLD’S MOST FAMOUS EQUATION WRITTEN IN EINSTEIN’S HAND LOT 4003 ALBERT EINSTEIN AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED WITH E=MC2 (OCTOBER 26, 1946) ESTIMATE: $400,000+
ALS in German, signed “A. Einstein,” one page, 8.5 x 11, blindstamped personal Princeton letterhead, October 26, 1946. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, with his most famous equation, “E = mc2,” penned in the first line in his own hand. In full (translated): “Your question can be answered from the E = mc2 formula, without any erudition. If E is the energy of your system consisting of the two masses, E0 the energy of the masses when they approach infinite distance, then the system’s mass defect is E0 - E / c2. In your case, (E0 - E)pot = k m2/r. On account of the kinetic energy, however, the total energy deficit is only half as large, in accordance with the virial theorem. Therefore, if is the mass of the total system, 2m - M = 1/2 k/c2 m2/r on the first approximation, that is, if the influence of the finiteness of the radius of the masses is ignored. I am convinced that this (or a formula corrected with respect to the radius of the masses) cannot help in shedding light on atomic constants. For that one must first have a theory that contains the correct unification of gravitation and electricity.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply at the top, also writing “E = mc2.” In fine condition, with a few penciled annotations attempting to transcribe Einstein’s handwriting.
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THE SINGULAR KNOWN EXAMPLE IN PRIVATE HANDS
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“E = mc2”—the mass-energy relationship. A product of Albert Einstein’s ‘annus mirabilis’ of 1905, and undoubtedly the most well-known equation ever set forth. In his later years, Einstein explained on-camera: ‘It followed from the special theory of relativity that mass and energy are but different manifestations of the same thing… Furthermore, the equation E is equal to m c-squared, in which energy is put equal to mass multiplied by the velocity of light squared, showed that a very small amount of mass may be converted into a very large amount of energy, and vice versa.’ The mass-energy relationship explained the source of the energy produced in the process of radioactive decay, which had only recently been discovered by Henri Becquerel. The mass defect—the difference in mass between the atom before emitting a particle, and the masses of that particle and the remaining atom—had been converted into energy. Unfortunately, the mass defect was much too small to be measured. Experimental verification of the relation would have to wait until 1932 when British physicists John Cockroft and Ernest Walton first ‘split the atom’ artificially, and with the 1938 discovery of nuclear fission by German chemists Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann, and physicists Lise Meitner and Otto Frisch. (In 1907, though, Einstein had presciently written: ‘It is possible that radioactive processes may become known in which a considerably larger percentage of the mass of the initial atom is converted into radiation of various kinds than is the case for radium.’) Everyone has seen the famous equation—it is part of the background of our lives. But how many have seen it written in Einstein’s own hand? According to archivists at the Einstein Papers Project at Caltech,
and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (where Einstein’s papers reside), only three holograph examples are known—and none of those are in private hands. This example—the fourth—is being revealed to the public for the first time. In this letter, written in 1946 in response to a query from Silberstein, Einstein calculates the mass difference between a system of two equal masses, m, an infinite distance from one another, and the same two masses a distance r apart, orbiting about their common center of mass. (At infinity the kinetic and gravitational potential energies both vanish, while at r, they do not. This energy difference is equivalent to a mass difference between the two configurations.) It is not a difficult exercise, and, as Einstein points out, “can be answered from the E = mc2 formula, without any erudition.” Why the interest in such a simple system, and such a simple calculation? The answer lies in Einstein’s final paragraph: the “atomic constants” Einstein mentions are what we today refer to as the ‘fundamental’ constants—the speed of light, c, Planck’s constant, h, the gravitational constant, G, the elementary electric charge, e, and fifteen others. The values of these constants are arbitrary—they are not determined by physical theory and could conceivably have any value at all. Why they have the values they do is one of the great problems in physics—and one that Einstein thought could be explained through a “theory that contains the correct unification of gravitation and electricity.” This quest for a ‘unified field theory’ consumed the final third of Einstein’s life. An important letter from both a holographic and a physics point of view, as it shows Einstein’s thinking on one of the most basic of all physical problems.
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View all the images from the booklet at www.RRAuction.com
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‘ON EINSTEIN’S GRAVITATIONAL FIELD EQUATIONS’ “The purpose of Part I. of this paper is to prove that Einstein’s field-equations in empty space (Tik=0) do not admit any radially (spherically) symmetrical solutions varying in time” LOT 4004 LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN SIGNED ‘ON EINSTEIN’S GRAVITATIONAL FIELD EQUATIONS’ OFFPRINT BOOKLET ESTIMATE: $200
Offprint booklet of Silberstein’s paper ‘On Einstein’s Gravitational Field Equations,’ from the Philosophical Magazine (November 1937), 5.5 x 8.5, ten pages, signed and inscribed on the front wrapper in fountain pen to his son, “To dear George, in remembrance of the snowstormy night of Valentine, 14 Feb. 1938, from Ludwik.” The paper begins: “The purpose of Part I. of this paper is to prove that Einstein’s field-equations in empty space (Tik=0) do not admit any radially (spherically) symmetrical solutions varying in time; in other words, that the solutions of this kind are necessarily statical.” A footnote states: “I have communicated this result, with its derivation, to Dr. Einstein in a private letter of December 1933.” In fine condition, with minor creases to wrappers, and pencil annotations to rear wrapper.
“To dear George, in remembrance of the snowstormy night of Valentine, 14 Feb. 1938, from Ludwik.”
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Nobel Prize winners Nernst, Einstein, Planck, Millikan, and Laue at dinner in Berlin, 1931
“
Hitler is supposed to have told Planck in an audience that only his age protected him from the concentration camp
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”
1934 LETTER ON NAZI PERSECUTION OF
JEWISH PHYSICISTS LOT 4005 ALBERT EINSTEIN TYPED LETTER SIGNED ON HITLER AND PLANCK (SEPTEMBER 20, 1934) ESTIMATE: $20,000+
TLS in German, signed “A. Einstein,” one page both sides, 8.5 x 11, September 20, 1934. Letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, on the subject of Hitler and Jewish refugees in America. In full (translated): “The rumor about Planck is entirely inaccurate. He has made an effort to soften things where he could, and he has made no compromises of any kind in his actions and words. Laue and Nernst, especially the former, have also behaved in an exemplary way. Hitler is supposed to have told Planck in an audience that only his age protected him from the concentration camp. And nevertheless... even as a goy, I would not have remained president of the Academy and the Kaiser Wilhelm Society under such circumstances... This much ‘privately,’ with friendly greetings. The ‘official’ part is enclosed.”
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He adds a postscript: “I will probably not be able to make the suggested visit. Namely, when I get started on such enterprises, that’s the end of any serious work. You can easily imagine this. Only a small portion of the 60,000 refugees have come to America. The authorities here are very receptive, but the influential American Jews sabotage things out of fear; they give money and keep the people at a distance. One more remark: I have been very reserved in the matter of Hitler and have not publicly participated in the fight. The reason for this is that, as a German resident and government employee for many years, as well as a Jew and someone robbed of his property by the Nazis, I cannot be an objective judge in the eyes of the general population. In this fight, Jews should really appear publicly as little as possible, because otherwise opposition to Hitler’s Germany will be stamped as a Jewish affair and thereby weakened.” In very good to fine condition, with light creasing and staining to edges, and trivial loss to one corner tip.
The images of the letter are not shown in full. To view the full images please go to www.RRAuction.com
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“AS A JEW AND SOMEONE ROBBED OF HIS PROPERTY BY THE NAZIS, I CANNOT BE AN OBJECTIVE JUDGE IN THE EYES OF THE GENERAL POPULATION” This remarkable letter outlines Einstein’s early position on Hitler—a “very reserved” one—as well as the response to Hitler’s rise by fellow German scientists Max Planck, Max von Laue, and Walther Nernst. One year earlier, Adolf Hitler had consolidated his power as chancellor of the German Reich and wasted no time in beginning his persecution of the Jews. New laws forced the Kaiser Wilhelm Society, of which Planck was president, to dismiss all Jewish scientists from its ranks. This included the chemist Fritz Haber, who had done more for German chemical warfare in World War I than any other scientist. Planck asked for an audience with Hitler, in an attempt to intercede on Haber’s behalf. He pointed out that without Haber’s work ‘the previous war would have been lost from the beginning,’ and also warned that it would be ‘self-mutilation’ for Germany to force valuable Jewish scientists to emigrate, losing their knowledge to competing nations. Hitler became increasingly enraged during their meeting, launching into an anti-Semitic tirade and offering no compromises. Publicly, Planck offered no comment on this audience for fourteen years, when he pub-
lished ‘My Audience with Adolf Hitler’ in the May 1947 issue of Physikalische Blatter. In the interim, fanciful rumors circulated about the meeting—such as the one Einstein here offers, that Hitler told Planck (a Lutheran) he was spared only because of his age. Although Planck tried to remain publicly apolitical, his best friend, Max von Laue, was vocal about his own opposition to the Nazi regime, as was the chemist Walther Nernst. In Einstein’s postscript, he makes note of his efforts on behalf of Jewish refugees—something that, in addition to his scientific work, would occupy much of his time in the ensuing years. After fleeing Germany himself in 1933, Einstein became a tremendous advocate for Jews seeking to escape Hitler’s reach and find asylum elsewhere. Joking that he ran an ‘immigration office,’ he would make visa applications for other German Jews, personally vouch for refugees fleeing Nazi rule, and solicit philanthropic support from other celebrities. However, he here recognizes both his own biases and those of the public at large, and declines to become the ‘face’ of anti-Hitlerism at this moment in time.
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EARLY HANDWRITTEN LETTER
BY PROF. DR. PLANCK “I have a great deal to do with student papers right at this time” LOT 4006 MAX PLANCK AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON RESEARCH TOPICS (JUNE 12, 1896) ESTIMATE: $1,000+
ALS in German, signed “M. Planck,” one page, 5.5 x 8.75, June 12, 1896. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, in part (translated): “I ask your forgiveness if it is not possible for me to fulfill your wish and suggest several topics for your friend to work on...I do not know the gentleman in question at all and therefore also do not know what preparation he brings to the task...I am unable to take all this on in this case, however, and still less so as I have a great deal to do with student papers right at this time.” In fine condition, with a few tiny stains. Silberstein earned his doctorate at Berlin’s Friedrich Wilhelm University in July 1894, where Max Planck was a professor and his PhD examiner in physics.
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KNOWN FOR HIS MATHEMATICAL PROWESS, PLANCK SOLVES A DIFFERENTIAL EQUATION LOT 4007 MAX PLANCK AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON A DIFFERENTIAL EQUATION (OCTOBER 5, 1897) ESTIMATE: $1,000+
ALS in German, signed “M. Planck,” one page both sides, 5.5 x 8.75, October 5, 1897. Handwritten mathematical letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, discussing the full solution (the “general integral”) of a particular differential equation. Well known for his mathematical prowess, Planck obtains the solution, both in general, and in a particular “limiting case” of interest to Silberstein. In very good to fine condition, with a partial split to the central horizontal fold, a few tiny edge tears, and a diagonal crease to one corner.
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SUGGESTED REVISIONS FOR A SUBMISSION TO THE ANNALEN DER PHYSIK
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PLANCK ON SILBERSTEIN’S
“TREATMENT OF SYMBOLIC INTEGRALS OF THE ELECTROMAGNETIC EQUATIONS” LOT 4008 MAX PLANCK AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON A SCIENTIFIC PAPER (JULY 27, 1901) ESTIMATE: $1,000+
ALS in German, signed “M. Planck,” four pages on two adjoining sheets, 5.5 x 8.5, July 27, 1901. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein discussing a potential submission to Annalen der Physik, the premier physics journal of the era; at this time, Planck was a member of the journal’s five-person editorial board. In part (translated): “I have read through your treatment of symbolic integrals of the electromagnetic equations with great interest, and even if I have not verified all the calculations, I
have nonetheless become convinced that your essay sets out a series of thoughts that will perhaps prove to be very valuable for the future and is therefore suited for publication in the Annalen der Physik in any event.” Planck weighs in on the limitations what Silberstein set forth, concluding: “You need more for your theory, namely that it can be expressed by a Taylor series.” He suggests a revision before sending it directly to the journal’s editor, Paul Drude. In fine condition, with tiny edge losses.
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“OBJECTIONS TO THE ELECTRON THEORY” LOT 4009 MAX PLANCK AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON OBJECTIONS TO THE ELECTRON THEORY (JULY 20, 1906) ESTIMATE: $5,000+
Important ALS in German, signed “M. Planck,” four pages on two adjoining sheets, 5.5 x 8.5, July 20, 1906. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein on electron theory, controversial at the time as a microscopic theory of electricity. Silberstein does not believe in electron theory and produces an equation that seems to show that the fundamental physical principle of conservation of energy is violated. Planck points out that another physicist, Max Abraham, has published a paper in which he showed that the offending term in that equation is always equal to zero. In part (translated): “Your objections to the electron theory, if I understand correctly, are not directed at the fact that this theory takes an atomistic approach to electricity, but rather at the fact that it seeks to trace the concept of kinetic energy completely back to the electromagnetic theory’s concept. I myself consider these efforts quite hopeless for the time being, but I nevertheless cannot entirely take your side...You say that the equation...contradicts the principle of conservation of energy as long as the integral ∫εvp dt is different from zero. In this, you are entirely correct. Except for the Electromagnetic energy E, there is no energy at all according to the electron theory. But I say that the integral ∫εvp dt is equal to zero for every individual electron according to the electron theory, in the case that, as is necessary, one understands under ε the entire electrical
field strength originating from the electron and from the other electrons. At base, leaving aside the designation of the same condition, this is what M. Abraham expresses in his equations (IIIa) and (IIIb) (Ann. Phys. 10, p. 118, 1903) and calls a ‘dynamic fundamental equation.’ Each electron is always in equilibrium under the influence of the resulting internal and external forces. This gives rise to exactly as many equations for each electron as the electron has degrees of freedom of movement.” In fine condition. In 1897, J.J. Thomson (see lot 4019) had shown that ‘cathode rays,’ a popular subject of investigation, were comprised of tiny particles—later to be called ‘electrons’—having a mass about 2000 times smaller than the mass of hydrogen, the lightest atom. Subatomic particles had been discovered. In 1881, Thomson showed that an electron, modeled as a uniformly charged, extremely small spherical particle, was harder to accelerate than an uncharged sphere. This meant, according to Newton’s Laws of Motion, that the charged sphere had a greater mass than the uncharged sphere, even if they were otherwise identical. This extra mass came from the charged electron’s interaction with its own electric field. Could all the electron’s mass be due to this ‘self-interaction’? Some physicists thought so. Silberstein thought not. Neither did Planck, but not for the same reasons, as he expresses in detail here.
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AMIDST DIFFERENT ELECTRON THEORIES LOT 4010 MAX PLANCK AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON DIFFERENT ELECTRON THEORIES (OCTOBER 22, 1906) ESTIMATE: $5,000+
ALS in German, signed “M. Planck,” four pages on two adjoining sheets, 5.5 x 8.5, October 22, 1906. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein on electron theory, touching on the yet new and hardly generally accepted theory of special relativity. In part: “You ask me much more than I will probably ever be able to answer you. The problem that you mention of the two electrons flying away from each other in a straight line, however simple it appears, is in fact extremely complicated as soon as the velocities of the electrons become high enough to be noticeable in comparison to the speed of light. And here the different electron theories also diverge from one another. Consequently, there is simply not an unequivocal answer to this today, not even in the form of differential equations. But now to your main question: do the equations (I), (II), (III) form a “complete” system or not?...To this I can only reply that for the time being and until further notice I believe that they form a complete system...In view of the difficulty of working out such a proof in general terms, what will be most advisable, in order to be able to move forward, is to begin by treating special cases of which it is easy to get an overall view. This has in fact been done, especially by Herglotz and Sommerfeld, and they have found no contradictions up to now, but rather on the contrary, decidedly positive results...
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“I am absolutely not a fan of rigid spherical electrons”
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I am absolutely not an enthusiast of rigid, spherical electrons, but I am doubtful whether this theory can be gotten around by uncovering internal contradictions in it. I have so far not come across any. If you should succeed in finding such, even if only in one concrete case, that would be extremely important and interesting. Now to conclude, one more thing that should have come at the beginning: my best good wishes for the thriving of the young physicist whom you have given the world, and for a happy course of your married life!” Silberstein writes and initials a note in the upper left corner. In fine condition.
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Silberstein and Planck are considering a situation in which two electrons fly away from each other along a straight line, due to their mutual electromagnetic repulsion. A simple enough problem, Planck says, although one which “is in fact extremely complicated as soon as the velocities of the electrons become high enough to be noticeable in comparison to the speed of light.” That is because different physicists—in particular H.A. Lorentz (see lots 4023 and 4024), Max Abraham, and indeed Einstein himself in his theory of relativity—had treated the electron’s interaction with its own electric field in different ways. These
are the “different electron theories” Planck mentions. Both Abraham and Lorentz maintained the existence of the all-pervading ‘luminiferous ether,’ a pre-relativity notion which Einstein, revolutionarily, completely did away with. Each theory predicted that as the electron’s velocity increased, so too would its mass. But the mechanism behind the increase differed. Most notably, Einstein’s theory predicted a velocity dependence of all masses completely independent of electromagnetic interactions.
Planck then discusses in some detail a set of equations pertaining to the problem, trying to determine whether they are complete—that is, whether they completely describe the situation at hand. Planck finally states that he is “absolutely not an enthusiast of rigid spherical electrons,” but he himself cannot discover any internal contradictions that would disprove the model.
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“I have to emphasize that the assumption c = constant is absolutely incompatible with the new Abraham theory”
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PLANCK ON ABRAHAM’S
THEORY OF GRAVITATION LOT 4011 MAX PLANCK AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON MAX ABRAHAM’S THEORY OF GRAVITATION (FEBRUARY 14, 1912) ESTIMATE: $5,000+
ALS in German, signed “M. Planck,” four pages on two adjoining sheets, 4.5 x 7, February 14, 1912. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, discussing his former Ph.D. student Max Abraham’s 1912 theory of gravitation—a precursor to Einstein’s general theory of relativity, the theory of gravity as spacetime geometry. In part (translated): “I would rather answer your valued letter (along with the postscript) of the 11th right away today than wait until at some point I have somewhat more time at my disposal to do so. However, I have to ask you in exchange to make do with a little, which should nonetheless be enough to characterize my position in relation to your question. Naturally, I can only give you my personal opinion, and indeed my current one. To err is always human. First and above all, I have to emphasize that the assumption c = constant is absolutely incompatible with the new Abraham theory, and that all consequences to be drawn from this assumption have no binding value within the framework of this theory. The transformation formulas x’=γ(x-βct),....of the usual theory of relativity therefore also have no general significance in the Abraham theory. They contradict invariance (with respect to ‘Lorentz transformation’) of degree and of degree Φ, which is postulated in the Abraham theory. The place of those transformation formulas, therefore, must be taken by other, more general ones, perhaps dx’=γ(dx-βcdt),...From a general perspective, therefore, Abraham’s conclusions cannot be maintained in connection with the elementary law of gravitation.
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However, this does not exclude the possibility that, especially in the case of slow movements and in weak fields, c can be considered as constant to a high degree of approximation, and consequently that many conclusions of the usual theory of relativity appear as approximate theorems of the new theory. This must nevertheless be specially investigated in every case. Perhaps the results obtained by Abraham can then also be upheld in this approximated sense. Little can be said about this in advance. If I have understood Abraham correctly, this is also his opinion with regard to the significance of his elementary law of gravitation. Now, permit me in addition to express my sincere sympathy for the great loss you have suffered in the death of your mother. What a comfort that you were able to be with her even in her last moments, and that your father has recovered somewhat from his severe spiritual and bodily depression!” In fine condition, with partial edge splitting to central horizontal fold. Einstein had a deep belief in the underlying symmetries of the universe. The laws of physics, he felt, should have the same mathematical form for all observers. Restricting this “invari-
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ance” requirement to ‘inertial’ observers—those undergoing unaccelerated relative motion—led to special relativity. Dropping the restriction, and insisting upon invariance for all observers leads to general relativity. The equations of mechanics, Newton’s Laws, are invariant under one set of equations, known as the Galilean transformations, while the laws of electricity and magnetism, Maxwell’s Equations—which predict the same value for the speed of light as measured by any inertial observer— maintained their form under a different set, the Lorentz transformations. Special relativity, with all its experimentally verified predictions, followed from the simple expedient of modifying the rules of mechanics so that they, too, are ‘Lorentz invariant.’ A fundamental postulate of relativity is the constancy of the speed of light for all observers, a situation ensured by the Lorentz transformations. Max Abraham was a staunch opponent of relativity, and his gravitational theory contained a varying velocity of light; hence it was not Lorentz invariant. That is the aspect of the theory which Planck discusses here.
AFTER PERSONAL TRAGEDY IN WORLD WAR I,
PLANCK POSTULATES A BRIGHT POSTWAR FUTURE
1911 Solvay Conference on Physics, held to discuss the theory of radiation and quanta. Among those pictured are Nernst, Lorentz, Planck, Sommerfeld, LOT 4012 MAX PLANCK AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON WORLD WAR I AND FAMILY (AUGUST 4, 1919)
and Einstein. These international conferences were put on hiatus during World War I.
ESTIMATE: $1,000+
ALS in German, signed “M. Planck,” four pages on two adjoining sheets, 4.5 x 7, August 4, 1919. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein. In part (translated): “Even if we had to endure many kinds of sadness during the war (my oldest son fell in France, and one of my twin daughters died in childbed), we have still never directly suffered lack, and now, hopefully, things will gradually start to move forward again with diligent work. I am very
happy to hear from you that there are also people in England who are looking toward the future with rational ideas and know how to distinguish between political and personal antagonisms. Only if one considers even a political opponent as an honorable man is one able to judge him correctly. Still, I believe that science will soon do its part to pave the way for a proper understanding. One must only have patience.
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“SCIENCE WILL SOON DO ITS PART TO PAVE THE WAY FOR A PROPER UNDERSTANDING” I do not know whether you are aware that I lost my first wife to death in 1909 and am now married for the second time, since 1911, to a niece of hers, who has given me a little son, now 7 years old. We are all well; my other twin daughter has married her brother-in-law and at the same time taken on the little orphaned grandchild, who is thriving splendidly, as a second mother. So you have ended up in optics; that fully corresponds to your exceedingly conscientious way of thinking, analyzing each thing down to the smallest details. And you do not seem to me to have forgotten your German in the least. Your letter is really beyond reproach. You also ask for news of Sommerfeld in Munich. Things are going quite well for him there; he has completed excellent papers in recent years, and in particular, I consider his discovery of the cause of the fine structure of the spectral lines a masterwork. But like all of us, he is suffering severely under the impressions of the war. May the frightful suffering soon come to an end!” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply at the top. In fine condition. In this significant autobiographical letter, Planck catches Silberstein up on some of the goings-on in his personal life, which was marred by tragedy
in the World War I era: after the death of his first wife in 1909, his son Erwin was taken prisoner by the French in 1914, his son Karl was killed in action at Verdun in 1916, and his beloved daughter Grete died in childbirth. Her twin sister, Emma, married her widower, took in the orphaned child, and was “thriving splendidly,” but she too would die in childbirth later on in 1919. Although Erwin survived, he would be executed during World War II as a conspirator in the 20 July Plot, Claus von Stauffenberg’s attempt to assassinate Hitler. Planck, a staunchly patriotic German, had been a signatory to the infamous ‘Manifesto of the Ninety-Three,’ a 1914 proclamation in which prominent German scientists, scholars, and artists declared their unequivocal support of German military actions in the early period of World War I. This helped to solidify support for the war amongst the intellectual class. However, Planck’s principal focus was physics, not politics. By 1916, he had moderated his views, and went semi-public with his regret about having signed the manifesto. Writing after war’s end, he looks forward to renewed cooperation among the international scientific community and hopes that science will “pave the way for a proper understanding” between peoples.
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THE EQUIVALENCE PRINCIPLE R
ecalling in his later years the genesis of general relativity—his theory of geometry and gravitation—Einstein wrote: “There then occurred to me the happiest thought of my life, in the following form. The gravitational field has only a relative existence.” He had visualized two situations: the effects of a gravitational field are eliminated for a “freely falling” observer, and are created for an accelerated observer. Jump from the roof of your house, a coffee mug in hand. Let it go. It stays precisely in position, relative to you, because you and the mug are accelerating towards the center of the Earth at precisely the same rate. It does not accelerate away from you—“fall down”—as it does when you are standing on the floor. The person standing on the floor sees the effects of gravity; the falling observer does not.
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Einstein receives the inaugural Max Planck Medal from its namesake in 1929
Or stand in an elevator (“Einstein’s Elevator”) far, far, away from the Earth, or any other material body— that is, far, far, away from any gravitational field. Suppose it is being pulled upward with a constant acceleration. You are being accelerated upwards by the floor’s push. Now, release the mug. There is no force acting on it to accelerate it upwards, so it remains in place relative to the outside world. But as you are accelerating upwards with respect to it, it is accelerating downward with respect to you. It is falling.
large mass indeed—like the mass of the Sun—to cause a measurable deflection. So, Einstein considered a beam of starlight headed towards Earth, passing close by the Sun on its journey. The bending of the beam would cause that star to appear in a different position in the sky than had it not passed by the Sun. The positions of the stars in the night sky—when their beams are not passing by the Sun—were well known. But how can a star’s position in the sky be measured during the day? During a total solar eclipse.
Since the existence of the gravitational field can only be inferred by observing its effects, from a physical point of view, the field is the effects. The freely falling observer can do no experiment which detects the Earth’s gravitation. For him, it does not exist. And any experiment done by the “elevator observer” shows the effects of a uniform gravitational field. For him, it exists. This is the equivalence principle.
Einstein calculated the deflection in 1915. But World War I made it impossible for any eclipse measurements to be made. Experimental verification would have to wait until war’s end.
Einstein used it to predict two extremely important effects: a beam of light bends in an accelerated reference frame, so it will be gravitationally deflected by a mass. Light changes its frequency—its color—in an accelerated frame, so it will undergo a gravitational frequency shift. Since the velocity of light is so great, it takes a very
In May 1919 British astronomer Arthur Eddington led an expedition to Principe, an island off the west coast of Africa, in an attempt to check the prediction made by a German physicist—both nations having just been wartime adversaries. In an amazing return to “international science,” Einstein’s prediction was verified, and a barely known physicist became an immediate international celebrity. The scientific content of the following Planck letters touch on, to varying degrees, the physics discussed here.
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PLANCK ON HIS SUPPORT FOR
“EINSTEIN’S THEORY OF GRAVITATION” LOT 4013 MAX PLANCK AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON EINSTEIN’S THEORY OF GRAVITATION (OCTOBER 19, 1919) ESTIMATE: $5,000+
ALS in German, signed “Planck,” four pages on two adjoining sheets, 5.5 x 8.5, October 19, 1919. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, commenting on the plausibility of Einstein’s theory of gravitation. Planck opens by congratulating Silberstein for his work towards renewing “international scientific exchange,” the backbone of scientific progress stymied by World War I—“a beautiful goal, worth the sweat of noble brows.” He holds that “out of all the sciences, mathematics is probably the best suited in this regard, since it is the furthest removed from all material and selfish interests.” Planck then comments on the just-held 1919 meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science, at which Eddington announced his eclipse results, and expresses his new-found belief in Einstein’s gravity: “Now to the report, extraordinarily interesting to me, about the proceedings at the most recent British Association concerning relativity theory and your other comments in that regard. According to this, the situation there is still somewhat different from what I thought, for here
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One of Eddington’s photographs of the total solar eclipse of May 29, 1919, presented in his 1920 paper announcing its success, confirming Einstein’s theory that light “bends”
the view is widespread that the motion effect on the light rays with respect to the sun has been proved beyond objection. What do I think about Einstein’s theory of gravitation? Unfortunately, I cannot say in one word. At the beginning, I was very unsympathetic to this theory, especially on account of the boundary conditions at infinity, even if I did not find a logical contradiction anywhere. With time, I then got used to this theory’s way of looking at things and became ever more receptive to the beauties of the perfection that it offers. Even the concern about the boundary conditions at infinity disappeared when Einstein introduced the hypothesis that space is enclosed in itself, hence has no boundaries at all. So I believe that the decision can come about only through success, namely through experience, and precisely for this reason, your reports on the results of the scrutiny of the various measurements are so extraordinarily interesting to me.”
“I got used to this theory’s way of looking at things and became ever more receptive to the beauties of the perfection that it offers”
Einstein had predicted two possible outcomes for Eddington’s observations—a ‘half-deflection’ which Newton’s theory could explain, and a full, completely relativistic one. The conference report stated that ‘the observation had been partially vitiated by the presence of clouds, but the plates already measured indicated the existence of a deflection intermediate between the two theoretically possible values.’ The results were still under great scrutiny by British physicists and astronomers. Sadly, the lack of national bias had not yet returned to the scientific community. He ends with polite though damning criticism of Silberstein’s alternative ether theory: “Now, where your own theory is concerned, it would…be of the greatest importance if [it] also led to a positive, measurable effect in any area. It would in any event be furthered incomparably by the proof of such an effect than by the proof of the absence of the Einstein effects.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply at the top. In very good to fine condition, with a few light stains, one edge tear, and some adhesive remnants affecting a few words of the text.
View all the pages from this letter at www.RRAuction.com
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PLANCK ON HIS
NOBEL PRIZE
AND AN INTERNATIONAL LENGTH STANDARD LOT 4014 MAX PLANCK AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON NOBEL PRIZE AND PLATINUM METER STANDARD (NOVEMBER 30, 1919) ESTIMATE: $1,000+
ALS in German, signed “M. Planck,” four pages on two adjoining sheets, 5.5 x 8.5, November 30, 1919. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein. In part (translated): “You will have been waiting a long time already for my thanks for your detailed letter of the 7th, as well as for the work on vector algebra, very interesting and valuable to me, and yet I am only getting to writing to you today, after having also received your friendly congratulations on the Nobel Prize...But you will understand me when I tell you that deep sadness has taken up residence in my house in the last week. I had two twin daughters, dear blooming girls, who were the joy of my whole heart. One married the history professor Dr. Fehling in Heidelberg 5 years ago and was snatched away in childbed upon the birth of her child. My son-in-law Fehling married my other daughter, his
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PLANCK WAS AWARDED THE NOBEL PRIZE IN ‘RECOGNITION OF THE SERVICES HE RENDERED TO THE ADVANCEMENT OF PHYSICS BY HIS DISCOVERY OF ENERGY QUANTA.’
sister-in-law, 2 years later, and now she has been overtaken by exactly the same fate as her sister. Now only the little grandchildren are left, two healthy, strong girls who nonetheless chiefly arouse and keep alive in me grief and melancholy about those lost... Where the matter of the Pt standard is concerned, it goes without saying that I regret the incident most deeply. I probably scarcely need to emphasize that, if I had had any influence on the handling of the affair, if I had even known about it at all, I would in any event have attempted to bring it about that this object, intended for scientific purposes, was protected and taken good care of. As it is, however, I must first of all find out what can still be established after the fact in this matter. For the time being, I and my colleague, the chemist Prof. Haber,
View all the pages from this letter at www.RRAuction.com
have not yet unearthed what has become of the Pt rod. It is of course possible that this object, like any and all publicly and privately owned platinum, was confiscated and used for military purposes... It matters a great deal to me not to appear in your eyes and those of all objectively thinking people as a defender of unjustified expedients of force. However much every patriot feels the moral duty to take action on behalf of his fatherland’s interests, national egoism still finds a limit in respect for such goods as serve supranational goals, namely science or art. I must conclude for today; there are still far too many storms breaking in on me.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply at the top. In fine condition, with slight running to ink at the top of the first page.
Planck was awarded the 1918 Nobel Prize in Physics in 1919 (as a ‘reserved’ prize awarded after no recipient was selected the previous year), in ‘recognition of the services he rendered to the advancement of Physics by his discovery of energy quanta.’ After thanking Silberstein for a congratulatory note, he details his recent personal tragedy—the death in childbirth of his second twin daughter, Emma—and ponders the disappearance of a platinum rod, evidently a length standard defining the meter. In 1889, the International Bureau of Weights and Measures distributed ‘National Prototype Metre Bars’ to thirty nations to define the international standard; Planck seems to suspect that Germany’s bar (no. 18) had been confiscated and used for war materiel.
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“The Einstein theory of relativity has evidently stood up as well as could possibly be expected”
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PLANCK DEFENDS EINSTEIN LOT 4015 MAX PLANCK AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED IN DEFENSE OF EINSTEIN’S THEORY OF RELATIVITY (JANUARY 25, 1920) ESTIMATE: $5,000+
ALS in German, signed “M. Planck,” three pages on two adjoining sheets, 5.5 x 8.5, January 25, 1920. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, following up on the missing platinum standard and once again defending Einstein’s theory. In full (translated): “It is high time that I report to you about the inquiries conducted here on my initiative in search of the location of the Pt standard in Brussels. My colleague Prof. Haber, at my request, contacted Col. (Ret.) [Oberst a. D.] Koeth, who as head of the War Raw Materials Division [Kriegsrohstoffabteilung] during the war was the top-ranking official responsible for the confiscation and processing of raw materials for war purposes. He for his part made inquiries with the official responsible for the metal area, who also belongs to the Raw Materials Division, Mr. von der Porten. I enclose here a copy of Mr. von der Porten’s letter in reply, as a product of the information collected, and I urge you most devoutly to bring its contents to the attention of Major MacMahon. Unfortunately, more detailed inquiries can only be undertaken if more specific information about the missing piece of platinum is avail-
able. The matter naturally remains no less regrettable as a consequence. Now, receive also many thanks for your friendly letter of the 7th of this month, which arrived here yesterday, with the proofs of your paper on the quantum theory of spectra. I have looked it over with great interest and find your presentation, as always, attractively readable, clear, and exhaustive on the essentials. I would not know how to make any suggestions for revision. The Einstein theory of relativity has evidently stood up as well as could possibly be expected under the deflection measurements. I believe that this speaks very strongly in its favor. Where the displacement of the spectral lines is concerned, the question is still open in my opinion. I consider it very possible, however, that the decision will ultimately come down in favor of the Einstein theory here as well. In any event, there is for the moment no cause to reject it and look for another way out of the darkness.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply at the top. In fine condition, with short edge splits to folds.
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“There is something alluring about explaining the new Einstein effect, the deflection of light rays near the sun, in the old way...But nevertheless, I have to say that I have entirely stepped back from that kind of approach”
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PLANCK: “WE HAVE THE THEORY OF RELATIVITY” LOT 4016 MAX PLANCK AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON ETHER AND RELATIVITY (MARCH 21, 1920) ESTIMATE: $5,000+
ALS in German, signed “M. Planck,” four pages on two adjoining sheets, 4.5 x 7, March 21, 1920. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein. In part (translated): “Receive my best thanks for your valued letter...your interesting essay in the Philosophical Magazine on the compressible light ether. To be sure, there is something alluring about explaining the new Einstein effect, the deflection of light rays near the sun, in the old way, by a condensation of the light ether. But nevertheless, I have to say that I have entirely stepped back from that kind of approach, which was only a makeshift, now that we have the theory of relativity. I developed the idea back then in an exchange of letters with Lorentz, but it never properly satisfied me, because I still found too much arbitrariness in it. Nonetheless, it seemed interesting to me to emphasize (as I wrote to Lorentz with the corresponding calculations) that it indeed does not resolve matters if the ether is taken to be adhering to the earth’s surface, but that practically the same result is obtained if the ether is thought of as condensed and gliding along the earth’s surface. While I did not ascribe any great significance to the subject, for the reasons mentioned, Lorentz did consider it, in connection with related questions, worth the trouble to publish, and he did so with my agreement. Now I am again reminded of these things by your
note, but despite the deftness with which you know how to awaken interest in these things again, I nevertheless have to say that for the time being I still do not think differently about them than before. Yes, if the red shift of the spectral lines called for by the theory of relativity did not exist! That would be something entirely different. But I still continue to believe that on exact measurement, it will be shown to be in fact the case, and I intend in any event to wait on further speculations until this experimental question has been decided. Right now I am working industriously on the new edition of my Wärmestrahlung [Heat radiation] and the new formulation of quantum theory occasioned by it. One does gradually make some forward progress.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply at the top. In fine condition. Although not obvious from the correspondence between him and Einstein presented in this catalog, Silberstein was a staunch believer in the all-pervading ether, and an equally strong denier of relativity. Faced with the experimental verification of the bending of light by the Sun, Silberstein invented a non-relativistic explanation—treating it, as Planck states, “in the old way, by a condensation of the light ether.” Planck finds these ideas—and similar ones put forth by Lorentz—“arbitrary,” and proclaims his belief in relativity.
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RESPONDING TO THE “OPINION THAT THE RED SHIFT OF THE SPECTRAL LINES IN THE GRAVITATIONAL FIELD CALLED FOR BY THE EINSTEIN THEORY IS NOT SEEN IN NATURE” LOT 4017 MAX PLANCK AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON GRAVITATIONAL REDSHIFT AND ETHER THEORY (APRIL 17, 1920) ESTIMATE: $5,000+
ALS in German, signed “M. Planck,” four pages on two adjoining sheets, 4.5 x 7, April 17, 1920. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, who clings to the ether theory in the face of all evidence to the contrary. Planck responds to his continued claim that Einstein’s gravitational red shift—the changing of frequency of ‘falling’ light—does not exist, and that Einstein’s other predictions can be explained by the ‘ether dragging’ of the Earth. Planck will not discount it, but it is plain that his thoughts are now aligned with Einstein’s—a point he made in his previous letter. In part (translated): “In your valued letter...two things were of quite particular interest to me: first, your opinion that the red shift of the spectral lines in the gravitational field called for by the Einstein theory is not seen in nature. That would be a fact of such fundamental significance that establishing it would justify the greatest of sacrifices. Unfortunately, I can contribute nothing to that effort
myself but must leave it to the astrophysicists. A positive result from your idea of attempting to examine the question of whether large masses carry the ether with them would naturally have a similar significance. For the time being, it takes great daring to believe in such a positive result, although it would be just as distorted to consider it excluded. For this reason, an examination of the question would be valuable in any case.” Congratulating Silberstein on his new position with Eastman Kodak in Rochester, New York—the “second matter”—Planck fondly remembers his visit to America and closes: “May you and yours find unlimited good fortune in the land of unlimited possibilities.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply at the top. In very good to fine condition, with light creases and staining, tiny edge splits, and reinforced filing holes to the bottom.
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LOT 4018 LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN’S ‘ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE QUANTUM THEORY BY MAX PLANCK’ OFFPRINT BOOKLET ESTIMATE: $200+
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Unsigned offprint booklet of Silberstein’s translation of Planck’s Nobel Prize lecture: The Origin and Development of the Quantum Theory by Max Planck, translated by H. T. Clarke and L. Silberstein, being the Nobel Prize Address delivered before the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences at Stockholm, 2 June, 1920. Oxford: The Clarendon Press, 1922. Bound in original wrappers, 6.5 x 9.5, 24 pages. In fine condition, with light toning to wrappers.
THE DISCOVERER OF THE ELECTRON
LOT 4019 J. J. THOMSON AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON SILBERSTEIN’S LECTURES (OCTOBER 3, 1911) ESTIMATE: $2,000+
Important English physicist (1856–1940) who received the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1906 for his discovery and identification of the electron. Rare ALS, one page both sides, 4.5 x 7, Cavendish Laboratory, Cambridge letterhead, October 3, 1911. Handwritten letter to “Worthington,” in full: “I think if Silberstein got sufficiently good testimonials it might be possible to get a course of lectures by him recognized by the Mathematical Board: this would merely mean that they appeared in the official list, not that the lecturer received any salary...all his remuneration would have
to come from fees, which would probably be very few. I should think a family would find it very difficult to live on £250 a year in Cambridge. It is not a cheap place.” In fine condition. Thomson was appointed to the esteemed Cavendish Professorship of Experimental Physics in 1884 and made his most important scientific breakthroughs in the Cambridge lab. In 1912, Silberstein spoke on ‘some applications of quaternions’ before the International Congress of Mathematicians at Cambridge.
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THE NOBEL PRIZE WINNER PUZZLES OVER “THE MOMENTUM AND ENERGY OF A HIGH SPEED ELECTRON” LOT 4020 WILLIAM HENRY BRAGG TYPED LETTER SIGNED ON A HIGH SPEED ELECTRON PROBLEM (JANUARY 25, 1919) ESTIMATE: $400+
British physicist, chemist, and mathematician (1862–1942) who shared the 1915 Nobel Prize in Physics with his son Lawrence Bragg, for ‘their services in the analysis of crystal structure by means of X-rays.’ TLS signed “W. H. Bragg,” one page, 5 x 7, University of London letterhead, January 25, 1919. Letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, in full: “I am puzzling over a point which involved the momentum and energy of a high speed electron. I wonder if you would be so good as to give me the benefit of your advice? Could I meet you anywhere on Monday? It would be very nice if you would come and have a cup of tea here about 4 o’clock, or later if it suits you better.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply on the reverse. In fine condition.
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LOT 4021 NIELS BOHR AND LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPH AND ‘QUANTUM THEORY OF SPECTRA’ BOOK ESTIMATE: $200+
Original vintage semi-glossy 4 x 5.5 silver gelatin photograph of Niels Bohr and Ludwik Silberstein side-by-side, annotated on the reverse in Silberstein’s hand, “December 5, 1923, Niels Bohr and L.S.” Includes a hardcover first edition of Report on the Quantum Theory of Spectra by Dr. Silberstein, published in London by Adam Hilger, Ltd., 1920, 5.75 x 8.75, 42 pages; in the preface, Silberstein describes the thin volume as “a brief account of only the most important contributions to Quantum Theory of Spectra, a new field of inquiry opened only six or seven years ago by Niels Bohr.” Silberstein notes the date of receipt from Hilger and lightly signs his initials, “L.S.,” on the first free end page. In overall fine condition, with small mounting remnants to the reverse of the photo.
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AMERICA’S FIRST NOBEL-WINNING SCIENTIST ON GEORGE ELLERY HALE AND AN ETHER-DRIFT EXPERIMENT LOT 4022 ALBERT A. MICHELSON AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON AN ETHER-DRIFT EXPERIMENT (DECEMBER 21, 1922) ESTIMATE: $800+
Physicist known for his work on measuring the speed of light (1852–1931) who, in 1907, became the first American scientist to win a Nobel Prize. He played a crucial role in the history of relativity, having performed one of its most famous experiments in 1887. ALS signed “A. A. Michelson,” one page, 8.25 x 10.75, University of Chicago, Ryerson Physical Laboratory letterhead, December 21, 1922. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, referencing influential solar astronomer George Ellery Hale and a proposed ether-drift experiment. In full: “Many thanks for your kind letter of congratulations—I think it is beautifully expressed—tho far beyond my deserts. I got a letter from Hale who is now I think in Spain or on his way to Egypt, trying to recover his somewhat precarious health, in which he asks for exact estimates of the cost of the [interferometer sketch] experiment and intimates that he thinks he can get the money for it.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply in the upper right corner. In fine condition. Accompanied by a contemporary newspaper clipping describing Silberstein’s attempts, with Michelson, to experimentally prove or disprove Einstein’s theory of relativity. Fascinated by light, and, in particular, the measurement—to greater and greater accuracy—of its velocity ‘in vacuo,’ Michelson was also interested in measuring the change in its speed as it passed through various refractive media. To this end he invented a highly precise instrument, the ‘Michelson interferometer.’ But the interferometer could have other uses.
Consider this pre-relativity picture: the Earth, in its journey around the Sun, is traveling through the fixed ether, with respect to which light travels with velocity c. At the Earth’s surface there is an ‘ether wind,’ just as there is an apparent wind felt by the window of a moving car. It is easy to show that two light beams, one traveling parallel to the ether wind and the other perpendicular, take different times to cover the same distance, L. Measurement of extremely small time-differences like this was just what his interferometer had been designed to do. And so, in 1887 he and his colleague Edward Morley performed the Michelson-Morley experiment. It found nothing. The two light beams, to the limits of the apparatus’s measuring ability, took precisely the same time. It was a shocking result. Where was the ether wind? There were many ad hoc explanations—for example, perhaps the leg of the interferometer parallel to the wind was compressed by an ‘ether pressure,’ shortening it by precisely the amount necessary to ensure equal times. But the simplest, most fundamental, and most revolutionary explanation was Einstein’s: there was no ether wind because there was no ether. Still, Silberstein remained a firm believer in the ether, even as the rest of the physics community passed him by. This letter—complete with a little drawing of a threelegged interferometer—mentions a new experiment, designed by Silberstein, which Michelson was planning to perform. As explained in the included news clipping, a null result here would be inconsistent with relativity.
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LORENTZ PRAISES SILBERSTEIN’S “BOOK ON THE THEORY OF RELATIVITY”
HENDRIK ANTOON LORENTZ Dutch physicist (1853–1928) who shared the 1902 Nobel Prize in Physics for the discovery and theoretical explanation of the Zeeman effect.
LOT 4023 HENDRIK ANTOON LORENTZ AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON SILBERSTEIN’S THEORY OF RELATIVITY TEXTBOOK (MARCH 19,1925) ESTIMATE: $1,000+
ALS signed “H. A. Lorentz,” three pages on two adjoining sheets, 4.5 x 7, March 19, 1925. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, in part: “I thank you very much for the second edition of your book on the theory of relativity, which I appreciate both for itself and as a token of your kindness. It may almost be called a new book and I may well congratulate you on having been able to finish it...Thanks to the clearness and liveliness with which it is written, your book will certainly find
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many readers and be of great use.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply at the top. In fine condition. Silberstein helped make special relativity and general relativity staples of university coursework: the first edition of his textbook, The Theory of Relativity, was published by Macmillan in 1914; a second edition, revised and expanded to include general relativity, was released in 1924.
GRATEFULLY SENDING THANKS FOR A TRANSLATION OF HIS “LEIDEN LECTURES”
LOT 4024 HENDRIK ANTOON LORENTZ AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON SILBERSTEIN’S LEIDEN LECTURES TRANSLATION (APRIL 2, 1927) ESTIMATE: $1,000+
ALS signed “H. A. Lorentz,” one page both sides, 6 x 9.5, Hotel McAlpin letterhead, April 2, 1927. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, in full: “I have been so busy these last weeks, that I did not yet acknowledge the receipt (as I ought to have done) of the copy of my Leiden lectures which you and Mr. Trivelli had the kindness to send me. In doing so now, I express my very hearty thanks for all the care which, notwithstanding all the work you have to do, you have bestowed upon the book...So far as I read it, the translation is excellent;
indeed, it could not have been in better hands and one can see that it has been done with affection.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply at the top. In fine condition, with light irregular toning. Accompanied by the original memorandum of agreement between Silberstein, Trivelli, and Macmillan for “an English Version of Lorentz’s Lectures on Theoretical Physics,” three pages, 8.5 x 13.75, January 8, 1924, outlining the terms of the publishing agreement and signed at the conclusion by the firm’s director, “George A. Macmillan.” www.RRAuction.com | 61
“IT IS VERY AGREEABLE GETTING THE ANGLE-SUM OF A TRIANGLE = A STRAIGHT ANGLE” LOT 4025 BERTRAND RUSSELL AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON GEOMETRY (MARCH 12, 1918) ESTIMATE: $400+
ALS, one page, 5 x 8, The Manor House letterhead, March 12, 1918. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, in full: “First & foremost let me thank you most warmly for ‘solutio problematis marmalator’—I was in town for the week-end & thoroughly enjoyed the ‘solution’—I do hope it does not mean that you have used up your month’s jam ration in obtaining it? I think you should certainly add the matter of angle-measurement that you send me. It is very agreeable getting the angle-sum of a triangle = a straight angle. It seems to me to complete your work in a most interesting way.” In fine condition. Though perhaps best known for his work in philosophy, much of Russell’s early life was dedicated to mathematics—An Essay on the Foundations of Geometry (1897), The Principles of Mathematics (1903), and Principia Mathematica (1910–13) were among his early, important works on the subject.
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SCALAR COEFFICIENTS, RELATIVITY, AND MARMALADE
LOT 4026 BERTRAND RUSSELL AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON A MATHEMATICAL MANUSCRIPT (NOVEMBER 12, 1918) ESTIMATE: $400+
ALS, one page, 7.75 x 8.25, November 12, 1918. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, in full: “I have read your MS with the greatest interest. It is a real pleasure to know that there is a projection treatment of vectors. You do not, in the MS you send me, state the principle of your construction, which is simply to substitute an arbitrary line for the line at infinity. The treatment of scalar coefficients, as we agreed when we met, is identical with the usual method of introducing projection coordinates, but
the idea of connecting it with vector analysis is, so far as I know, entirely new. Many thanks for the relativity paper, which I am ashamed to confess I have not yet found time to read amidst the distractions of these days. It is extraordinarily bold of you to take up the ‘marmalade problem,’ but I hate to think of your time being spent on such a trivial matter.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply on the reverse. In fine condition.
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RUSSELL JOINS THE BARNES FOUNDATION, WHERE HE ASSEMBLED A HISTORY OF WESTERN PHILOSOPHY
LOT 4027 BERTRAND RUSSELL AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON THE BARNES FOUNDATION (JANUARY 18, 1941) ESTIMATE: $400+
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ALS, one page, 8.5 x 11, January 18, 1941. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, in part: “Your letter of Nov. 13 remained so long unanswered because my abode was still uncertain. Now it is as above, about 25 miles west of Philadelphia. I have a 5-years’ job at The Barnes Foundation, of which the main purpose is to teach art, but Dr. Barnes has made a new department in my case. The work is light & altogether agreeable, so I am in luck.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply in the upper right. In fine condition.
“I HAVE BEEN STUDYING YOUR WORK ON RELATIVITY WITH GREAT INTEREST”
ALFRED NORTH WHITEHED
Important English mathematician, logician, and philosopher (1861–1947) who co-authored the three-volume Principia Mathematica with Bertrand Russell. LOT 4028 ALFRED NORTH WHITEHEAD AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON MATH CONCEPTS AND RELATIVITY (JUNE 13, 1918) ESTIMATE: $800+
Rare ALS signed “A. N. Whitehead,” one page, 6.25 x 6.25, personal letterhead (struck through with his new address written in the upper right), June 13, 1918. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, in full: “I have been hoping to find some off-prints of my paper on math concepts etc.—my papers are in some confusion
owing to recent removals both in my private house and college rooms—now that lectures are over I will make a more systematic search. I have been studying your work on Relativity with great interest.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply in the upper right. In very good to fine condition, with irregularly trimmed edges.
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“YOU HAVE THIS DAY BEEN ELECTED A FELLOW OF THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY” LOT 4029 ARTHUR EDDINGTON LETTER SIGNED ON ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY FELLOWSHIP (JANUARY 14, 1916) ESTIMATE: $400+
British astrophysicist (1882–1944) famous for his work regarding the theory of relativity, remembered for his observations of bending starlight during the 1919 total solar eclipse that offered experimental proof of Einstein’s theory. TLS signed “A. S. Eddington,” one page, 8 x 13, Royal Astronomical Society letterhead, January 14, 1916. Standard form letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, announcing his election as a member of the Royal Astronomical Society. In part: “I have the pleasure to inform you, that you have this day been elected a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society. The Bye-Laws relative to new Fellows, with which it is expedient that you should be more immediately acquainted, will be found on a subsequent page.” Printed on the integral leaf are extracts from the organization’s bye-laws pertaining to the election of fellows, admission fees, and annual contributions. In fine condition, with light horizontal creasing, and toning and soiling to borders.
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“I HAVE RECEIVED DR. SILBERSTEIN’S NEW MEMOIR ON RELATIVITY FROM THE PHILOSOPHICAL MAGAZINE” LOT 4030 ALFRED GEORGE GREENHILL AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON SILBERSTEIN’S RELATIVITY PAPER (JANUARY 21, 1913) ESTIMATE: $200+
British mathematician (1847– 1927) who served as professor of mathematics at the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich, London, and was one of the world’s leading experts on applications of elliptic integrals in electromagnetic theory; he also developed a notable rule of thumb for calculating the optimal twist rate for lead-core bullets. ALS signed “G. Greenhill,” one page, 8 x 12.5, January 21, 1913. Handwritten letter to Mrs. Silberstein, in part: “I have received Dr. Silberstein’s new memoir on Relativity from the Philosophical Magazine. I am very grateful to him for introducing us so agreeably to the subject in his lectures, as I feared I should never be able to make the start required.” In very good to fine condition, with edge splits to folds and a few light stains. In 1913, Ludwik Silberstein published his ‘Second Memoir on Quaternionic Relativity’ in the London, Edinburgh, and Dublin Philosophical Magazine and Journal of Science.
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OLIVER HEAVISIDE
English autodidactic electrical engineer, mathematician, and physicist (1850–1925) who brought complex numbers to circuit analysis, invented a new technique for solving differential equations, independently developed vector calculus, and rewrote Maxwell’s equations in the form commonly used today. Reclusive and often at odds with the scientific establishment, Heaviside nevertheless changed the face of telecommunications, mathematics, and science. His autograph is exceedingly rare—we find no records of any having been publicly offered for sale in the past.
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“In general we are not usually concerned with the fractional differential operations, only with integral” LOT 4031 OLIVER HEAVISIDE AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON OPERATORS IN PHYSICAL MATH (OCTOBER 5, 1909) ESTIMATE: $200+
ALS, one page, 6.5 x 8, October 5, 1909. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, responding to a request for reprints of his papers ‘On Operators in Physical Mathematics,’ first published in 1892–93. These summarized his work on what he called ‘operational calculus,’ a method of turning differential equations into algebraic ones, and thus simplifying the process of obtaining solutions. In part: “I shall have pleasure in sending you Parts 1 and 2 of my Op. in Phys. Math., as soon as I can find them. But I have no separate Part 3, because it received the honour of being declined. It contained an examination of Parts 1 and 2, with connections and extensions, & numerical verifications. But the essence of it is in E.M.T. vol. 2, condensed, so it was effectively published by me in a better place than the Archives of the R.S. The
prejudice against me in this matter in England was very great. I may add that in vol. 3 of my E.M.T., which I hope will be ready next year (delayed by editorial inappreciation, in the first place, publisher’s slowness next, and my illness last), there is some more ‘operational’ stuff. I think if I were beginning again, I should speak of the ‘differential solution’ of a physical problem, rather than the ‘operational solution.’ You will understand that in general we are not usually concerned with the fractional differential operations, only with integral. Nevertheless the fractional ones push themselves forward sometimes, and are just as real as the other.” In fine condition. This letter is quoted in Paul J. Nahin’s Oliver Heaviside: The Life, Work, and Times of an Electrical Genius of the Victorian Age (p. 235), in a discussion of the meaning of Heaviside’s fractional operator, and impulses.
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THE “CLUMSY” STANDARDIZATION OF VECTOR NOTATION FOR PRINT LOT 4032 OLIVER HEAVISIDE AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON MATHEMATICAL TYPESETTING (JUNE 3, 1915) ESTIMATE: $200+
ALS, one page both sides, 6.5 x 8, June 3, 1915. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, offering—in long and explicit detail—guidance for the representation of vector mathematical notation in print, and lamenting the poor choices made by both German physicists, and typesetters in general. Heaviside is perhaps most wellknown for his introduction of ‘vector calculus’ into physics—particularly in electromagnetic theory. Maxwell’s original formulation of the equations of electrodynamics are completely unrecognizable today—twenty equations for twenty variables. Heaviside’s use of the tools of vector calculus—gradient, divergence, curl— and his combining of some of those variables into three simple vector functions, enabled him to cast twelve of those equations into the four ‘Maxwell’s Equations’ we know today. In small part: “I am really surprised at the Germans settling upon [ab] which makes very clumsily [c[ab]]. [d[c[ab]]], etc.!! Couldn’t they see what [that] would lead to?…When half educated men meet together to settle rules, what can you expect?” As for the typesetters, “I once asked a Master-printer why they kept on doing it (and other things I correct) over & over again. He said they did it because they wanted to make everything look exactly alike. But it is by differences that mathematicians read mathematics easily.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply at the top. In fine condition. 70 | May 20, 2021
“I SHOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHAT NEWTON WOULD SAY” LOT 4033 OLIVER HEAVISIDE AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON MATHEMATICAL NOTATION AND NEWTON’S SECOND LAW (JUNE 30, 1915) ESTIMATE: $200+
ALS, one page both sides, 6.5 x 8, June 30, 1915. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, acknowledging receipt of Silberstein’s book—most probably, based on his comments, ‘Vectorial Mechanics,’ published in 1913—and commenting extensively thereon. Of interest here, though, are his comments concerning Silberstein’s presentation of dynamics. The rules of dynamics, the ‘laws’ which determine the actual motion, were, of course, first presented by British physicist Isaac Newton. But they had, since his time, been cast in other mathematical forms—all equivalent, all giving the same results, but each stressing a different point of view. Two of the most useful ‘re-castings’ were those due to the French physicists Joseph-Louis Lagrange and Jean le Rond d’Alambert. Heaviside was not a fan. He writes, in small part: “I don’t care for your chapter on General Dynamics. It is too continental, too mathematical & not enough dynamical. I think d’Alembert’s princ[iple] greatly overrated… I sh’d like to know what Newton w’d say if told that the inactivity of internal reactive forces wasn’t his… Lagrange’s first eq’n ? ? etc. It is a pity that it is so math[ematica]l. And yet it does not go far enough… There are too many ‘Principles.’ I have even seen Newton’s F=ma called a Principle. It is merely a def ’n of what he called force, when m is a constant.“ Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply at the top. In fine condition, with a couple small stains. www.RRAuction.com | 71
LOT 4034 OLIVER HEAVISIDE PARTIAL AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON BRITISH CLIMATE (JUNE 1915) ESTIMATE: $200+
Partial ALS, one page, 6.5 x 5.75, [no date but circa June 1915]. Last page of a handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, in part: “’A dry, airy, and sunny situation.’ Impossible in Devonshire for dryness. The air is oversaturated with water through most of the winter. Airy:—It is too airy. Tho I am thankful to say that the trees cut off worst of the cold winds. Sunny:—it faces the South on the living side, and we get as much sun as is possible, for there are no near trees in the way of the S. Now I hope you are
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satisfied. What w’d suit me would be a dry, warm, and not very airy situation. It can’t be got in any part of the British Isles! Egypt or Algeria or some parts of Italy or S. France or Spain might suit me. The warmth is most essential. (You omit that). Dryness and airiness are killing without warmth. E.g. Edinboro and the N.E. coast of England.” Silberstein notes the dates of receipt and reply on the reverse. In fine condition.
“YOU MISUNDERSTAND IF YOU THINK MY SCRAPHEAP IS NEARLY READY FOR PUBLICATION”
LOT 4035 OLIVER HEAVISIDE AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ON UNFINISHED PROJECTS (MARCH 4, 1917) ESTIMATE: $200+
ALS, one page both sides, 6.5 x 8, March 4, 1917. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein, concerning papers by them both. In part: “The paper you ask my opinion about I have gone through 3 times, or at least 2 1/2. I can say at once that I thought it was a very well written paper, quite plain to read. But I c’d not make up my mind whether your working hypothesis would sufficiently meet the complicated effects observed...You misunderstand if you think my Scrapheap is nearly ready for publication. It is raw material, & no one can do the work save myself. I know that because I have recently gone over a lot of it…It is little things, stepping stones, or even pebbles. E.g. paper just out by Lamb…He remarks
that Fournier’s solution for a rod (lateral vibrations) can’t be physically true, because it indicates instantaneous action. Well, I investigated that 30 years ago, & got a true propagational formula. I told Lord Kelvin of that some 10 years ago, in connexion with his Deep Water-Wave investigations.” He also discusses some issues of typesetting, and in a postscript describes his diet amidst food shortages during World War I. In fine condition. This letter is referenced in Paul J. Nahin’s Oliver Heaviside: The Life, Work, and Times of an Electrical Genius of the Victorian Age (p. 286), in a discussion of the ‘mysterious’ unpublished fourth volume of Heaviside’s Electromagnetic Theory (E.M.T.).
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LOT 4036 LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN’S POLISH PAPERS ESTIMATE: $200+
Five items from Silberstein’s homeland in Poland, spanning several decades. Includes: a mounted circa 1889 photograph of Silberstein as part of a class in Krakow at about 18 years old, signed and dated on the reverse with a Polish caption; an 1890 ALS by in Polish by physicist August Witkowski, under whom Silberstein studied calculus at Jagiellonian University; an 1895 document from the Lviv Polytechnic, where Silberstein worked as an assistant; an original circa 1902 carte-de-visite photograph of the mustached Silberstein; and a 1947 TLS in Polish by electrical engineer Janusz Lech Jakubowski, sending thanks to Silberstein’s wife for a gift of $100. In overall very good to fine condition.
LOT 4037 LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN’S EUROPEAN PAPERS ESTIMATE: $200+
Collection of papers from Ludwik Silbertstein’s education and early career in Europe, circa 1890–1909, including a diploma from Heidelberg University, a Heidelberg University coursework booklet (signed by professors including the mathematician Leo Königsberger, physicist Georg Hermann Quincke, mathematician and Zionist Hermann Schapira, and philosopher Kuno Fischer), a German patent, and four Italian documents. In overall very good to fine condition.
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LOT 4038 LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN SIGNED PHOTOGRAPH ESTIMATE: $200+
Sharp original 2.5 x 4.25 carte-de-visite portrait of Silberstein at about age thirty, taken by Murillo of Warsaw, neatly signed in black ink, “Ludwik Silberstein,” with the year “1902” penned in blue in an unknown hand. In fine condition.
PUBLISHING AGREEMENT FOR ONE OF THE FIRST TEXTBOOKS ON “THE THEORY OF RELATIVITY” LOT 4039 LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN’S PUBLISHING DOCUMENT FOR ‘THEORY OF RELATIVITY’ ESTIMATE: $200+
Partly-printed document, three pages on two adjoining sheets, 8.25 x 13.5, October 22, 1912. Memorandum of agreement between “Dr. L. Silberstein (hereinafter termed the Author)…and Macmillan and Company, Limited,” granting the right to “produce and publish the work The Theory of Relativity which has been or is to be written, compiled, or edited by the Author.” Signed at the conclusion by the firm’s director, “Maurice Macmillan.” In fine condition, with light staining and soiling. Published by Macmillan in 1914, Silberstein’s influential textbook on the Theory of Relativity was one of the first in the English language and helped to establish special relativity as a staple of university coursework. Based on a course of lectures he delivered at University College, London, in 1912–13, Silberstein’s text drew connections between special relativity and the theories and ideas that preceded it, while providing some of the mathematical underpinnings of the modern theory. A second edition, revised and expanded to include developments in general relativity, was released by Macmillan in 1924.
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LOT 4040 LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN SIGNED ‘VECTORIAL MECHANICS’ BOOK AND PUBLISHING DOCUMENT ESTIMATE: $200+
Signed book: Vectorial Mechanics. First edition. London: Macmillan and Co., 1913. Hardcover, 5.75 x 8.75, 197 pages. Signed on the first free end page by the author, “Ludwik Silberstein,” who adds notes to the front pastedown: “Rcvd. from Macmillan & Co. Ltd., in six copies, September 3rd, 1913, London” and “Published at 7/6, 1913, Revised to 10/0 in 1918.” On two blank pages in the rear, Silberstein writes out notes under the heading “Hodograph of Keplerian Motion.” Includes Silberstein’s original memorandum of agreement from the publisher, three pages, 8.25 x 13.5, February 25, 1913, outlining the terms of the agreement and signed at the conclusion by the firm’s director, “Maurice Macmillan.” In overall very good to fine condition, with light edgewear to the book, and scattered staining to the publishing document.
LOT 4041 LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN PHOTOGRAPH, DOCUMENT, AND LETTER BY J. W. PERRY ESTIMATE: $200+
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Three items from Silberstein’s personal archives: a 1918 memorandum of agreement with Longmans, Green & Co. for the publication of “a work entitled Simplified Method of Tracing Rays through any Optical System of Lenses, Prisms & Mirrors,” with an initialed note by Silberstein at the conclusion; a circa 1925 glossy photograph of Silberstein smoking a pipe; and a 1946 ALS by J. W. Perry, mourning the loss of a mutual friend. In overall fine condition.
SILBERSTEIN’S TORONTO LECTURES LOT 4042 LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN SIGNED ‘ THEORY OF GENERAL RELATIVITY’ BOOK, HANDWRITTEN LECTURE SCHEDULE, AND LETTER BY JOHN CUNNINGHAM MCLENNAN ESTIMATE: $200+
Three items associated with Silberstein’s lectures at the University of Toronto in the 1920s: a signed first edition of Silberstein’s ‘The Theory of General Relativity and Gravitation: Based on a course of lectures delivered at the Conference on Recent Advances in Physics held at the University of Toronto, in January, 1921’; Silberstein’s own handwritten schedule of “Lectures on Relativity (spec. & general) and Gravitation delivered at Phys. Building, Toronto University, 1921”; and a 1924 TLS by the director the University of Toronto’s physics laboratory, signed “J. C. McLennan,” letting Silberstein know “how greatly the staff, students and I myself have enjoyed your lectures on the applications of general relativity to the curvature of space-time.” In overall fine condition.
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ON SILBERSTEIN’S CAUSALITY:
“You had written a little masterpiece, full of admirable doctrine, admirably illustrated and most lucidly expressed”
LOT 4043 HAROLD MACMILLAN DOCUMENT SIGNED AND PERCY NUNN AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED ESTIMATE: $200W+
Two items associated with Ludwik Silberstein’s book Causality: A Law of Nature or a Maxim of the Naturalist?: a 1932 memorandum of agreement with Macmillan for its publication, signed by the firm’s director, the future British Prime Minister
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Harold Macmillan; and a 1935 ALS by educational theorist T. Percy Nunn, praising the work as “a little masterpiece, full of admirable doctrine, admirably illustrated and most lucidly expressed.” In overall fine condition.
“INTEGRATE BY DIFFERENTIATING” LOT 4044 LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN (2) OFFPRINT BOOKLETS ESTIMATE: $200+
Two offprint booklets from Silberstein’s collection: an unsigned copy of “On the Expanding-Universe Doctrine” by Ludwik Silberstein, from the Transactions of the Royal Society of Canada (1935), four pages, 6.5 x 9.75, bound in the original wrappers; and a signed copy of “Differential Operators Acting as Integrators” by Ludwik Silberstein, from the Philosophical Magazine (June 1940), 16 pages, 6.75 x 10, signed and inscribed on the front wrapper by Dr. Silberstein to his son, “’Integrate by differentiating.’ To George, from Dad, Sept. 7—1940.” In overall fine condition, with soiling to the wrappers of the signed booklet.
LOT 4045 LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN’S TYPED AND HANDWRITTEN PERSONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY ESTIMATE: $200+
Ludwik Silberstein’s typed, annotated, and handwritten personal bibliography, fourteen pages on eleven sheets, 8.5 x 11, headed: “List of Scientific Papers and Books by Dr. L. Silberstein.” Silberstein lists 179 of his scientific works in chronological order, from 1893 to 1947. The first nine pages are typed (with occasional handwritten notations), and the last five are handwritten by Silberstein. The wide variety of publications reveal Dr. Silberstein’s diverse scientific interests—electromagnetism, optics, relativity, vector algebra, quantum theory, photography, helium, and more—as well as his mastery of several languages, including Polish, German, and English. The comprehensive document is a remarkable first-hand record of a lifetime of scientific work. In overall very good to fine condition, with light toning and soiling, and some paper loss to the edge of the first page. www.RRAuction.com | 79
GEOMETRY AS “A KIND OF HUMAN GAME”— SILBERSTEIN’S 200+ PAGE HANDWRITTEN TREATISE ON THE SUBJECT LOT 4046 LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN AUTOGRAPH MANUSCRIPT: ‘A TREATISE ON PLANE GEOMETRY’ ESTIMATE: $200+
Very lengthy unsigned handwritten manuscript by Dr. Ludwik Silberstein entitled “A Treatise on Plane Geometry,” numbered as 223 pages (pages 29–32 missing), 8.5 x 11, with chapter headings such as “Projectivities in One-Dimensional Forms, Conics,” “Collineation, Correlation,” “Polarity,” “Elliptic Geometry,” and “Affine Geometry.” In the eloquent introduction, Dr. Silberstein outlines his objective: “The plan or tendency of this treatise is to consider Geometry, of two dimensions for the present, as a kind of human game, such e.g. as chess, though chess is an immensely more complicated game than the geometrical one, which, however, exceeds the former, no doubt, in beauty of structure and applicability of results. And the purpose of the book is to teach the reader, in a rigorous yet humanly pleasant way, to play the game correctly and to solve its problems with a minimum of mental effort, and thus enable him to enjoy the more its aesthetical side.” In overall fine condition, with toning to some pages.
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LOT 4047 LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN’S PHOTOGRAPHIC PAPERS ESTIMATE: $200+
Material from Silberstein’s personal archive associated with his research in optics and photography, primarily related to his long-term consultancy with the Eastman Kodak Corporation. Includes: a first edition of Elements of the Electromagnetic Theory of Light, published in 1918 and annotated inside by Silberstein; offprint booklets of “Quantum Theory of Photographic Exposure” (July 1922), “A Fundamental Criterion of Uniform Representability of Equiluminous Colors on a Geometrical Surface”
(September 1942), and “Investigations on the Intrinsic Properties of the Color Domain II” (January 1943); a mounted photograph of Silberstein with fellow Kodak physicists Lloyd A. Jones, C. E. Kenneth Mees, Fred M. Bishop, and A. P. H. Trivelli; and a 1944 letter to Silberstein from the executive offices of Life Magazine, transmitting tearsheets of the essays ‘Color’ and ‘Speaking of Pictures.’ In overall fine condition.
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SILBERSTEIN’S LAST PAPER— A SCIENTIFIC STUDY OF PHOTOGRAPHIC EMULSION
LOT 4048 LUDWIK SILBERSTEIN AUTOGRAPH MANUSCRIPT SIGNED: ‘THE EFFECT OF CLUMPING ON THE SIZE-FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTION AND ON THE H. AND D. CURVE OF AN EMULSION’ ESTIMATE: $200+
AMS signed and dated one day before his death, “Ludwik Silberstein, Rochester, N.Y., January 16, 1948,” eight pages on four sheets, headed: “The Effect of Clumping on the Size-Frequency Distribution and on the H. and D. Curve of an Emulsion.” In this evidently unpublished handwritten technical manuscript, Silberstein discusses the clumping of grains in a photographic emulsion as it pertains to the film characteristic curve (the relationship
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between the optical density and relative exposure). In overall fine condition. Accompanied by a newspaper clipping of Silberstein’s obituary from the Rochester News, published January 18, 1948, which makes note of his long-term consultancy with the Eastman Kodak Company (“For 28 years he had been a consultant in mathematical physics on the application of various theories to photography”), in addition to his place as an authority on relativity.
Conditions of Sale ANYONE EITHER REGISTERING TO BID OR PLACING A BID (“BIDDER”) ACCEPTS THESE CONDITIONS OF SALE AND ENTERS INTO A LEGALLY, BINDING, ENFORCEABLE AGREEMENT WITH R&R AUCTION COMPANY OF MASSACHUSETTS, LLC (“RR AUCTION”) TOGETHER WITH BIDDER, THE “PARTIES”). This Agreement contains important provisions that control rights and liabilities, and specifically has provisions governing how disputes are handled as well as LIMITATIONS OF LIABILITY that can be imposed upon RR Auction, WAIVER OF JURY and ARBITRATION PROVISIONS. This acknowledgement is a material term of these Conditions of Sale and of the consideration under which RR Auction agrees to these terms. PLEASE READ CAREFULLY. The following terms and conditions (“Conditions of Sale”) constitute the sole terms and conditions under which RR Auction will offer for sale and sell the property on its website, and/or described in the catalog of items for auction (the “Catalog”). These Conditions of Sale constitute a binding agreement between the Parties with respect to the auction in which Bidder participates (the “Auction”). By bidding at the Auction, whether in person, through an agent or representative, by telephone, facsimile, online, absentee bid, or by any other form of bid or by any other means, Bidder acknowledges the thorough reading and understanding of all of these Conditions of Sale, all descriptions of items in the Catalog, and all matters incorporated herein by reference, and agrees to be fully bound thereby.
Section 1 The Parties1.1 RR Auction and Auction This Auction is presented by RR Auction, a d/b/a/ of R&R Auction Company of Massachusetts, LLC, as identified with the applicable licensing information on the title page of the Catalog or on the www.RRauction.com Internet site. The Auction is conducted under these Conditions of Sale. Announcements and corrections from the podium at live auctions and those made through the Conditions of Sale appearing on the Internet at RRauction.com supersede those in the printed Catalog. 1.2 Bidder Bidder shall mean the original Bidder on the property offered for sale by RR Auction and not any subsequent owner or other person who may acquire or have acquired an interest therein. If Bidder is an agent, the agency must be disclosed in writing to RR Auction prior to the time of sale, otherwise the benefits of the warranty shall be limited to the agent and not transferable to the undisclosed principal. The rights granted to Bidder under these Conditions of Sale are personal and may not be assigned or transferred to any other person or entity, whether by operation of law or otherwise without the express written assent of RR Auction. Bidder may not transfer, assign, or otherwise convey these Conditions of Sale or any of the rights herein, and such purported transfer, assignment, or conveyance shall be null and void. No third party may rely on any benefit or right conferred on any Bidder by these Conditions of Sale, and no third party is intended as a beneficiary of these Conditions of Sale. Bids will not be accepted from minor persons under eighteen (18) years of age without a parent or legal guardian’s written consent containing an acknowledgment of the Conditions of Sale herein and indicating their agreement to be bound thereby on behalf of the Bidder. All Bidders must meet RR Auction’s qualifications to bid. Any Bidder who is not a client in good standing of RR Auction may be disqualified at RR Auction’s sole option and will not be awarded lots. Such determination may be made by RR Auction in its sole and unlimited discretion, at any time prior to, during, or even after the close of the Auction. RR Auction reserves the right to exclude any person from the Auction. If an entity places a bid, then the person executing the bid on behalf of the entity agrees to personally guarantee payment for any successful bid and agrees to be bound by these Conditions of Sale in addition to company for whom the Bidder is acting By accepting the Conditions of Sale, Bidder personally and unconditionally guarantees payment. Section 2 Bidding Privileges
2.1 In order to place bids, Bidders who have not established an account with RR Auction must either furnish satisfactory credit information (including two collectibles-related business references) or supply additional information if requested, well in advance of the Auction. Bidders who are not members of RRAuction.com should pre-register before the close of the Auction to allow adequate time to contact references. Privileges will be granted at the sole discretion of RR Auction. Additionally, Bidders who have not previously established credit or who wish to bid in excess of their established credit history may be required to provide a cash deposit prior to RR Auction’s acceptance of a bid. Check writing privileges and immediate delivery of merchandise may also be determined by pre-approval of credit based on a combination of criteria: RRAuction.com history, related industry references, bank verification, a credit bureau report and/or a personal guarantee for a corporate or partnership entity in advance of the Auction venue. 2.2 Bidder providing any false or misleading information provided in connection with the registration shall be a material breach of the Conditions of Sale and in addition to any other remedies at law shall excuse RR Auction from performance under these Conditions of Sale, including the right to any refund. 2.2 Bidding privileges may be revoked without notice, for any reason, at the sole discretion of RR Auction . Section 3 Buyer’s Premium 3.1 The Bidder acknowledges and agrees that a 25% buyer’s premium will be added to the hammer price on all individual lots sold in timed and live Auctions. Buyer’s premium for our Sports Auctions is 20%. For payment other than by cash, delivery will not be made unless and until full payment has been received by RR Auction, i.e., check or wired funds have fully cleared. Unless otherwise agreed in writing, signed by RR Auction, payment in full is due within thirteen (13) calendar days of the Auction or within twelve (12) calendar days of the invoice date, whichever is earlier. Bidder’s failure to pay any payment in full when due required shall constitute a material breach, and in addition to other damages available under contract or law, at RR Auction’s election, RR Auction may cancel the sale and require full premium still be due along with interest at 1.5% per month from the date of breach, or at the maximum legally allowable rate. Section 4 Bidding 4.1 Each Bidder’s determination of its bid should be based upon its own examination of the item(s) and independent investigation, rather than the any reliance as to what is represented in the Catalog, online or elsewhere. Bidder affirms that it regards any statements made by RR Auction concerning the item as solely opinion and that Bidder is making its own inspection and independent evaluation of the goods, and is not relying upon any description or statements by RR Auction (including as to quality, authenticity, provenance, ownership, liens existing, on goods legality, or value) in making its determination to bid on or purchase an item. In any purchase or sale, the value of the item(s) is determined by the price. THE BIDDER HEREBY ASSUMES ALL RISKS CONCERNING ANY AND ALL PURCHASES TO THE FULLEST EXTENT UNDER APPLICABLE LAW. 4.2 RR AUCTION IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ERRORS IN BIDDING. A Bidder should make certain to bid on the correct lot and that the bid is the maximum (plus the Buyer’s Premium) that the Bidder is willing and able to pay. Since other Bidders (by mail, facsimile, online, and in person) will be present, and since a reoffering could damage the momentum of the sale, once the hammer has fallen and RR Auction has announced the winning Bidder, such Bidder is unconditionally bound to pay for the lot, even if the Bidder has made a mistake. 4.3 All prospective Bidders who examine lots in person prior to the sale shall personally assume all responsibility for any damage they cause in so doing. RR Auction shall have sole discretion in determining the value of the damage caused, which shall be promptly paid by the prospective Bidder. 4.4 Title to any lot remains with Consignor, any secured party of the Consignor, or assignee of Consignor, as the case may be, until the lot is paid for in full by Bidder and Bidder has fully satisfied any outstanding financial obligations to RR Auction (including as it concerns aby other lots). RR Auction reserves the right to require payment in full before delivering any lot to the successful Bidder. 4.5 It is the Bidder’s responsibility and obligation to have the lots fully insured while in their possession. Bidder assumes any and all risk of loss upon the earlier of shipment to Bidder or in Bidder’s possession. 4.6 Bidder grants to RR Auction or its assigns the right to offset any sums due, or found to be due by RR Auction, and to make such offset from any past, subsequent or future consignment, or items acquired by Bidder in possession or control of RR Auction or from any sums due to Bidder by RR Auction. Bidder fur-
ther grants RR Auction a lien consisting of a senior security interest (or purchase money security interest to the extent applicable) in such sums or items to the fullest extent applicable, authorizes RR Auction to file documents concerning the interest, and Bidder agrees to execute any further documents as may be reasonably necessary to grant RR Auction such security interest. Bidder agrees that RR Auction and its assigns shall be a secured party with respect to items bought by Bidder and in the possession of RR Auction, to the extent of the maximum indebtedness, plus all accrued fees and expenses, until the indebtedness is paid. 4.7 By bidding in this sale, Bidder personally and unconditionally guarantees payment. The authorized representative of any corporate Bidder who is present at the sale shall provide RR Auction or its agent, prior to the commencement of the bidding (or at the time of registration), with a statement signed by a principal, director or officer that they he or she personally and unconditionally guarantees any payment due RR Auction. 4.8 RR Auction may at its sole and absolute discretion, make loans or advances to Consignors and/or prospective Bidders. Section 5 Bidding Options 5.1 Non-Internet bids (including but not limited to in-person, facsimile, phone and mail bids) are treated similarly to floor bids in that they must be on-increment. Any in-person, facsimile, phone, or mail bids that do not conform to a full increment will be rounded up or down to the nearest full increment and this revised amount will be considered Bidder’s high bid. 5.2 When identical bids are submitted, preference is given to the first received. To ensure the greatest accuracy, written bids should be entered on the standard printed bid sheet and be received at RR Auction’s place of business at least twenty-four (24) hours before the Auction start. RR Auction is not responsible for executing mail bids or facsimile bids received on or after the day the first lot is sold, nor Internet bids submitted after the published closing time; nor is RR Auction responsible for proper execution of bids submitted by telephone, mail, facsimile, e-mail, Internet, or in person once the Auction begins. 5.3 In all Auctions, bids on an item must raise the current high bid by at least 10%, or as specified on a per-Auction basis. Bids will be accepted in whole dollar amounts only. No “buy” or “unlimited” bids will be accepted. In a live sale, bids on an item can change at the discretion of RR Auction. 5.4 RR Auction reserves the right to accept or decline any bid. Bids must be for an entire lot and each lot constitutes a separate sale. All bids are per lot unless otherwise announced. Live auction lots will be sold in their numbered sequence unless RR Auction directs otherwise. It is unlawful and illegal for Bidders to collude, pool, or agree with another Bidder to pay less than the fair value for lot(s). For live auctions, RR Auction will have final discretion in the event that any dispute should arise between Bidders. RR Auction will determine the successful Bidder, cancel the sale, or re-offer and resell the lot or lots in dispute. RR Auction will have final discretion to resolve any disputes arising after the sale and in online auctions. If any dispute arises, RR Auction’s sale record is conclusive. Section 6 Payment
6.4 All deliveries are subject to good funds; funds being received in RR Auction’s account before delivery of the Purchases; and all payments are subject to a clearing period. RR Auction reserves the right to determine if a check constitutes “good funds”: checks drawn on a U.S. bank are subject to a ten (10) calendar day hold, and ten (10) business days when drawn on an international bank. Clients with pre-arranged credit status may receive immediate credit for payments via e-Check, personal or corporate checks. 6.5 In the event that a Bidder’s payment is dishonored upon presentment(s), Bidder shall pay the maximum statutory processing fee set by applicable state law. If Bidder attempts to pay via check and the financial institution denies the transfer from Bidder’s bank account, or the payment cannot be completed using the selected funding source, Bidder agrees to complete payment. 6.7 If RR Auction refers any unpaid invoice to an attorney for collection, the Bidder agrees to pay and shall be liable for RR Auction’s attorney’s fees, court costs, and other collection costs incurred by RR Auction in addition to the invoice amount and interest the greater of 1.5% per month or at the maximum legally allowable rate from date of invoice to collection. If RR Auction assigns collection to its house counsel, such attorney’s time expended on the matter shall be compensated at a rate comparable to the hourly rate of independent attorneys. 6.8 RR Auction shall have a lien against the merchandise purchased by the Bidder (as well as to the extent it is a consignor any other monies owed or due to Bidder) to secure payment of the Auction invoice. RR Auction is further granted a lien and the right to retain possession of any other property of the Bidder then held by RR Auction or its affiliates to secure payment of any Auction invoice or any other amounts due RR Auction or affiliates from the Bidder. With respect to these lien rights, RR Auction shall have all the rights of a secured creditor, including but not limited to the right of sale. In addition, with respect to payment of the Auction invoice(s), the Bidder waives any and all rights of offset he might otherwise have against RR Auction and the consignor of the merchandise included on the invoice (the Consignor”). If a Bidder owes RR Auction or its affiliates on any account, RR Auction and its affiliates shall have the right to offset such unpaid account by any credit balance due Bidder, and it may secure by possessory lien any unpaid amount by any of the Bidder’s property in their possession. 6.9 All checks, cashiers checks, bank checks, or money orders are payable to R&R Auction Company of Massachusetts, LLC. RR Auction clients with an invoice totaling $1,000 or under will have the option to pay by VISA, Mastercard, Discover or Paypal. All Paypal payments must be sent to FinanceDepartment@ rrauction.com. Authorize.net, a third-party service provider contracted by RR Auction for processing on-line payments, charges a nonrefundable service fee of 3%, which will be added to your final invoice should you pay by credit/debit card. Section 7 Sales Tax RR Auction is a remote seller and we are now required to collect Sales/Use Tax from our bidders. The states that we have nexus in we will be required to collect and remit sales tax on your behalf. Each state has different requirements to meet nexus. When RR Auction has achieved a certain monetary and/or invoice threshold in each state we will apply sales tax to your total invoice. Please go to our terms on our website to see the states that are affected.
6.1 Subject to fulfillment of all of the Conditions of Sale set forth herein, upon the sooner of (1) the passing of title to the offered lot pursuant to these Conditions of Sale, or (2) possession of the offered lot by the Bidder, Bidder thereupon (a) assumes full risk and responsibility (including without limitation, liability for or damage to frames or glass covering prints, paintings, photos, or other works), and (b) will immediately pay the full purchase price or such part as RR Auction may require. In addition to other remedies available to RR Auction by law, RR Auction reserves the right to impose from the date of sale a late charge of 1.5% per month of the total purchase price if payment is not made in accordance with the conditions set forth herein. All property must be removed from RR Auction’s premises by the Bidder at his/her expense not later than sixty (60) business days following its sale and, if it is not so removed, RR Auction may send the purchased property to a public warehouse for the account, at the risk and expense of the Bidder.
If we have not achieved nexus in a particular state it is still your responsibility to pay sales tax on your purchases.
6.2 Payment is due upon closing of the Auction session, or upon presentment of an invoice. RR Auction reserves the right to void an invoice if payment in full is not received within thirteen (13) calendar days of the Auction or within twelve (12) calendar days of the invoice date. In cases of nonpayment, RR Auction’s election to void a sale does not relieve the Bidder from their obligation to pay RR Auction its fees (seller’s and Buyer’s Premium) on the lot and any other damages pertaining to the lot.
If you have a resale number please email Sue@RRAuction.com or fax to (603) 732-4288 a copy of your state resale certificate and you will be exempt from paying sales tax.
6.3 All sales for total invoices greater than $1,000 are strictly for cash in United States dollars (including U.S. currency, bank wire, cashier checks, eChecks, and bank money orders), and are subject to all reporting requirements.
The sales tax rate is determined by the State, Country, and City where purchases are shipped to. If you decide to pick up your purchases at our New Hampshire location you will not be required to pay sales tax. The State of New Hampshire does not have a general sales and use tax. All purchases picked up at our Massachusetts location will be taxed at the current rate of 6.25%. Pennsylvania sales or use tax may be due in connection with the purchase and delivery of tangible personal property to Pennsylvania individuals and businesses. The purchaser is required to file a use tax return if tax is due in connection with the purchase and delivery in the Commonwealth. This notice is required pursuant to the provisions of the Tax Reform Code of 1971. 72 P.S. ¤ 7213.2.
Section 8 Delivery; Shipping; and Handling Charges Bidder is liable for shipping and handling and providing accurate information as to shipping or delivery locations and arranging for such. RR Auction is unable to combine purchases from other auctions or affiliates into one package for shipping purposes. Lots won will be shipped in a commercially reasonable time after payment in good funds for the merchandise and the shipping fees is received or
credit extended, except when third-party shipment occurs. Bidder agrees that service and handling charges related to shipping items which are not pre-paid may be charged to a credit card on file with RR Auction. Successful international Bidders shall provide written shipping instructions, including specified Customs declarations, to RR Auction for any lots to be delivered outside of the United States. NOTE: Declaration value shall be the item’(s) hammer price and RR Auction shall use the correct harmonized code for the lot. Domestic Bidders on lots designated for third-party shipment must designate the common carrier, accept risk of loss, and prepay shipping costs. Section 9 Title Title shall not pass to the successful Bidder until all invoices of Bidder (including those pertaining to the item(s) at issue) and amounts owed to RR Auction are paid in full. It is the responsibility of the Bidder to provide adequate insurance coverage for the items once they have been delivered to a common carrier or third-party shipper. Section 10 Rights Reserved RR Auction reserves the right, at any time before, during or after an auction has ended to: withdraw any lot before or at the time of the Auction, cancel any bid, and/or to postpone the Auction of all or any lots or parts thereof, for any reason. RR Auction shall not be liable to any Bidder in the event of such withdrawal, cancellation, or postponement under any circumstances. RR Auction reserves the right to refuse to accept bids from anyone at any time. Section 11 Conducting the Auction 11.1 RR Auction reserves the right to postpone the Auction or any session thereof for a reasonable period of time for any reason whatsoever, and no Bidder or prospective Bidder shall have any claim as a result thereof, including consequential damages. 11.2 RR Auction’s Discretion: RR Auction shall determine opening bids and bidding increments. RR Auction has the right in its absolute discretion to reject any bid in the event of dispute between Bidders or if RR Auction has doubt as to the validity of any bid, to advance the bidding at its absolute discretion and to determine the successful Bidder in the event of a dispute between Bidders, to continue the bidding or to reoffer and resell the lot in question. In the event of a dispute after the sale, RR Auctions record of final sale shall be conclusive. RR Auction also may reject any bid if RR Auction decides either that any bid is below the reserve of the lot or article or that an advance is insufficient. Unless otherwise announced by RR Auction at the time of sale, no lots may be divided for the purpose of sale. 11.3 Reserves Lots may be subject to a reserve which is the confidential minimum price below which the lot will not be sold. Consignors may not bid on their own lots or property. RR Auction may, from time to time, bid on items that it does not own. RR Auction may execute bids consecutively or otherwise up to one bid increment below the reserve. 11.4 Off-Site Bidding Bidding by telephone, facsimile, online, or absentee bidding (advance written bids submitted by mail) are offered solely as a convenience and permitted subject to advance arrangements, availability, and RR Auction’s approval which shall be exercised at RR Auction’s sole discretion. Neither RR Auction nor its agents or employees shall be held liable for the failure to execute bids or for errors relating to any transmission or execution thereof. In order to be considered for off-site bidding in any manner, Bidders must comply with all of these Conditions of Sale and the terms contained on the Registration Form. 11.5 Estimate Prices: In addition to descriptive information, each item in the Catalog sometimes includes a price range which reflects opinion as to the price expected at auction (the “Estimate Prices”). In other instances, Estimate Prices can be obtained by calling RR Auction at (603) 732-4280. The Estimate Prices are based upon various factors including prices recently paid at auction for comparable property, condition, rarity, quality, history and provenance. Estimate Prices are prepared well in advance of the sale and subject to revision. Estimates do not include the Buyer’s Premium or sales tax (see under separate heading). 11.6 Owned or Guaranteed Property: RR Auction generally offers property consigned by others for sale at public auction; in very limited occasion, lots are offered that are the property of RR Auction.
11.7 Before the Auction: Bidder may attend pre-sale viewing for all of RR Auction’s auctions at no charge. All property to be auctioned is usually on view for several days prior to the sale. Bidder is encouraged to examine lots thoroughly. Bidder may also request condition reports (see below). RR Auction’s staff are available at viewings and by appointment. 11.8 Maximum Bids In All Auctions: To maximize Bidder’s chance of winning, RR Auction strongly encourages the use of maximum bids. RR Auction will then bid for Bidder until the lot reaches Bidder’s specified maximum. Maximum bids are strictly confidential. Placing arbitrary, non-incremental bids on lots with prior maximum bids may result in these lots being sold for less than 10% above the under Bidder’s bid. 11.9 Successful Bids: The fall of RR Auction’s hammer indicates the final bid. RR Auction will record the paddle number of the Bidder. If Bidder’s salesroom or absentee bid is successful, Bidder will be notified after the sale by mailed or emailed invoice. 11.10 Unsold Lots: If a lot does not reach the reserve, it is bought-in. In other words, it remains unsold and is returned to the Consignor. RR Auction has the right to sell certain unsold items after the close of the Auction. Such lots shall be considered sold during the Auction and all these Terms and Conditions shall apply to such sales including but not limited to the Buyer’s Premium, return rights, and disclaimers. 11.11 Bidding in Timed Auction: Bidder may open, monitor, and/or raise bids at any time before the close of a lot through www.rrauction.com. RR Auction offers a callback service the day of the Auction, but Bidder is responsible for supplying a correct telephone number(s) where Bidder can be reached until the Auction closes. Bidder must request this service in writing. RR Auction will make reasonable efforts to ensure that Bidders who request a callback are contacted if outbid; however, RR Auction does not guarantee this service and it is merely a courtesy and not an enforceable right. The auctioneer may also execute a bid on behalf of the consignor to protect the reserve, either by entering a bid in response to salesroom, telephone or absentee bids. Under no circumstances will the auctioneer place any bid on behalf of the consignor above the reserve. The auctioneer will not specifically identify bids placed on behalf of the consignor to protect the reserve. To ensure proper registration, those Bidders intending to bid via the Internet must visit www.RRauction.com and register accordingly at least one full day prior to the actual auction. Winning bidders will be notified by RR Auction. RR Auction is not responsible or liable for any problems, delays, or any other issues or problems resulting out of use of the Internet generally or specifically, including but not limited to transmission, execution or processing of bids. Any Bidder may bid on any lot prior to 6 pm EST/EDT. At that time, an extended bidding period goes into effect. If Bidder has not bid on a lot before 6 pm EST/ EDT, Bidder may not bid on that lot after 6 pm EST/EDT. Only those Bidders who have placed bids on a lot before 6 pm EST/EDT will be allowed to bid on that lot after 6 pm EST/EDT. If Bidder is the only Bidder on a lot at 6 pm EST/ EDT, that lot is awarded to Bidder. During the extended bidding period, a lot will remain open only to those who bid on that lot prior to 6 pm EST/EDT. All lots WITHOUT an opening bid at 6 pm EST/EDT will remain OPEN to ALL Bidders until 7 pm EST/EDT or until they receive their first bid. These lots will close immediately upon receipt of a bid or at 7 pm EST/EDT, whichever comes first. For all lots that are active after 7 pm EST/EDT, bidding will remain open until 30 minutes pass without a bid being placed on THAT lot (the “30 Minute Rule”). The 30 Minute Rule is applied on a PER LOT BASIS; each lot in the Auction closes individually based on bidding activity after 7 pm EST/EDT. On a PER LOT BASIS, the 30 minute timer will reset each time a bid is placed after 7 pm EST/EDT. If Bidder is the high Bidder, raising Bidder’s maximum bid will NOT reset the timer. RR Auction reserves the right to close the Auction at any time at its sole discretion. 11.12 Bidding - Internet Live Auction: Bidder may open, monitor, and/or raise bids at any time before the close of a lot through www.rrauction.com. RR Auction offers a callback service the day of the Auction, but Bidder is responsible for supplying a correct telephone number(s) where Bidder can be reached until the Auction closes. Bidder must request this service in writing. RR Auction will make reasonable efforts to ensure that Bidders who request a callback are contacted if outbid; however, RR Auction does not guarantee this service and it is merely a courtesy and not an enforceable right. To ensure proper registration, those Bidders intending to bid via the Internet must visit www.RRauction.com and register accordingly at least one full day prior to the actual auction. Winning bidders will be notified by RR Auction. RR Auction is not responsible or liable for any problems, delays, or any other issues or problems resulting out of use of the Internet generally or specifically, including but not limited to transmission, execution or processing of bids. During live internet or live auction, property is auctioned in consecutive numerical order, as it appears in the catalog. The auctioneer will accept bids from
those present in the salesroom or absentee bidders participating by telephone, internet or by written bid left with RR Auction in advance of the auction. The auctioneer may also execute a bid or bids (successively or otherwise) on behalf of the consignor to protect the reserve, either by entering a bid in response to salesroom, telephone or absentee bids. Under no circumstances will the auctioneer place any bid on behalf of the consignor above the reserve. The auctioneer will not specifically identify bids placed on behalf of the consignor to protect the reserve. All auctions for lots are with reserve unless specifically stated otherwise. During live Auctions, internet bids can be placed in real time through one or more of the following Third Party services: www.liveauctioneers.com, www.invaluable. com and www.icollector.com. RR Auction is not responsible or liable for any problems, delays, or any other issues or problems resulting out of use of the Internet generally or specifically, including but not limited to transmission, execution or processing of bids. RR Auction treats any third-party site bids as floor or telephone bids. Floor bids and telephone bids are always considered first over third party sites bids, and floor bids are considered earlier than telephone bids. All RR Auction lots purchased through the third-party sites carry an additional Buyer’s Premium. 11.13 Miscellaneous: Agreements between Bidders and Consignors to effectuate a non-sale of an item at Auction, inhibit bidding on a consigned item to enter into a private sale agreement for said item, or to utilize RR Auction’s Auction to obtain sales for non-selling consigned items subsequent to the Auction, are strictly prohibited. If a subsequent sale of a previously consigned item occurs in violation of this provision, RR Auction reserves the right to charge Bidder the applicable Buyer’s Premium and Consignor a Seller’s Commission as determined for each auction venue and by the terms of the seller’s agreement. Acceptance of these Terms and Conditions qualifies Bidder as a client who has consented to be contacted by RR Auction in the future. In conformity with ”donot-call” regulations promulgated by the Federal or State regulatory agencies, participation by the Bidder is affirmative consent to being contacted at the phone number shown in his application and this consent shall remain in effect until it is revoked in writing. RR Auction may from time to time contact Bidder concerning sale, purchase, and auction opportunities available. 11.14 Rules of Construction: RR Auction presents properties in a number of collectible fields, and as such, specific venues have promulgated supplemental Terms and Conditions. Nothing herein shall be construed to waive the general Conditions of Sale by these additional rules and shall be construed to give force and effect to the rules in their entirety. Section 12 RR Auction’s Remedies Failure of the Bidder to comply with any of these Conditions of Sale or the terms of the Registration Form is an event of material breach or default. In such event, RR Auction may, in addition to any other available remedies specifically including the right to hold the defaulting Bidder liable for the Purchase Price or to charge and collect from the defaulting Bidder’s credit or debit accounts as provided for elsewhere herein: (a) cancel the sale, retaining any payment made by the Bidder as damages (the Bidder understands and acknowledges that RR Auction will be substantially damaged should such default occur, and that damages under subpart (a) are necessary to compensate RR Auction for such damages); (b) resell the property without reserve at public auction or privately; (c) charge the Bidder interest on the Purchase Price at the rate of one and one-half percent (1.5%) per month or the highest allowable interest rate; (d) take any other action that RR Auction, in its sole discretion, deems necessary or appropriate to preserve and protect RR Auction’s rights and remedies. Should RR Auction resell the property, the original defaulting Bidder shall be liable for the payment of any deficiency in the purchase price and all costs and expenses associated there with, including but not limited to warehousing, sales-related expenses, reasonable attorney fees and court costs, commissions, incidental damages and any other charges due hereunder which were not collected or collectable. In the event that such Bidder is the successful Bidder on more than one lot and pays less than the purchase price for the total lots purchased, RR Auction shall apply the payment received to such lot or lots that RR Auction, in its sole discretion, deems appropriate. If RR Auction does not exercise such discretion, the lots to which the payment shall be applied will be in descending order from the highest purchase price to the lowest. Any Bidder failing to comply with these Conditions of Sale shall be deemed to have granted RR Auction a security interest in, and RR Auction may retain as collateral such security for such Bidder’s obligations to RR Auction, any Bidder’s property in RR Auction’s possession or to which title has not yet passed to Bidder. RR Auction shall have the benefit of all rights of a secured party under the Uniform Commercial Code (U.C.C.) as adopted by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Section 13 Warranties
13.1 RR Auction does not provide any warranties to Bidders, whether expressed or implied, beyond those expressly provided in these Conditions of Sale. All property and lots are sold ”as is” and “where is”. By way of illustration rather than limitation, neither RR Auction nor the Consignor makes any representation or warranty, expressed or implied, as to merchantability or fitness for intended use, condition of the property (including any condition report), correctness of description, origin, measurement, quality, rarity, importance, exhibition, relevance, attribution, source, provenance, date, authorship, condition, culture, genuineness, value, or period of the property. Additionally, neither RR Auction nor the Consignor makes any representation or warranty, expressed or implied, as to whether the Bidder acquires rights in copyright, trademark, or other intellectual property (including exhibition or reproduction rights) related to the item, or whether the property is subject to any limitations or other rights. RR Auction does not make any representation or warranty as to title. 13.2 All descriptions, photographs, illustrations, and terminology including but not limited to words describing condition (including any condition reports requested by Bidder, see also Terminology), authorship, period, culture, source, origin, measurement, quality, rarity, provenance, importance, exhibition, and relevance, used in the Catalog, bill of sale, invoice, or anywhere else, represent a good faith effort made by RR Auction to fairly represent the lots and property offered for sale as to origin, date, condition, and other information contained therein; they are statements of opinion only. They are not representations or warranties and Bidder agrees and acknowledges that he or she shall not rely on them in determining whether or not to bid or for what price. Price estimates (which are determined well in advance of the Auction and are therefore subject to revision) and condition reports are provided solely as a convenience to Bidders and are not intended nor shall they be relied on by Bidders as statements, representations or warranties of actual value or predictions of final bid prices. 13.3 Bidders are accorded the opportunity to inspect the lots and to otherwise satisfy themselves as to the nature and sufficiency of each lot prior to bidding, and RR Auction urges Bidders to avail themselves accordingly. 13.4 All lots sold by RR Auction are accompanied by an Auction Certificate (“AC”). On any lot presented with an AC issued by RR Auction, the certification is only as to its attribution to the person or entity described or to the lot’s usage and only as explicitly stated therein (the “AC”), to the exclusion of any other warranties, express or implied, including but not limited to those pursuant to the Uniform Commercial Code. The AC inures only to the original Bidder (as shown in RR Auction’s records). Bidder may not transfer, assign, or otherwise convey the AC and such purported transfer, assignment, or conveyance shall be null and void. Section 14 Firearms RR Auction complies with all Federal and State rules and regulations relating to the purchasing, registration and shipping of firearms. A Bidder is required to provide appropriate documents and the payment of associated fees, if any. Bidder is responsible for providing a shipping address that is suitable for the receipt of a firearm. Section 15 Unauthorized Statements Under no circumstances is any employee, agent or representative of RR Auction authorized by RR Auction to modify, amend, waive or contradict any of these Conditions of Sale, any term or condition set forth on a registration form, any warranty or limitation or exclusion of warranty, any term or condition in either the Registration Form or these Terms and Conditions regarding payment requirements, including but not limited to due date, manner of payment, and what constitutes payment in full, or any other term or condition contained in any documents issued by RR Auction unless such modification, amendment, waiver or contradiction is contained in a writing signed by all parties. Any statements, oral or written, made by employees, agents or representatives of RR Auction to Bidder, including statements regarding specific lots, even if such employee, agent or representative represents that such statement is authorized, unless reduced to a writing signed Bidder and by an authorized officer of RR Auction by all parties, are statements of personal opinion only and are not binding on RR Auction, and under no circumstances shall be relied upon by Bidder as a statement, representation or warranty of RR Auction. Section 16 Bidder’s Remedies 16.1 Except as stated expressly herein, Bidder’s sole and exclusive remedy related to or pertaining to items it bids upon, views, or purchases from RR Auction, and any claims by Bidder related to authenticity, ownership, condition, title or value, shall be against Consignor only.
16.2 This section sets forth the sole and exclusive remedies of Bidder as against RR Auction (inclusive of its affiliates, officers, managers, employees or agents), or in any way arising out of, related to, or in connection with these Conditions of Sale, , and is expressly in lieu of any other rights or remedies which might be available to Bidder by law. Time is of the essence with respect to these procedures. 16.3 Title to Items The Bidder hereby accepts the benefit of the Consignor’s warranty of title and any other representations and warranties made by the Consignor for the Bidder’s benefit. In the event that Bidder demonstrates in writing, satisfactory to the sole discretion of RR Auction, that there was a breach of the Consignor’s warranty of title concerning a lot purchased by Bidder, RR Auction may make demand upon the Consignor to pay to Bidder the Purchase Price (including any premiums, taxes, or other amounts paid or due to RR Auction). Should the Consignor not pay the Purchase Price to Bidder within thirty days after such demand (if any made), RR Auction may disclose the identity of the Consignor to Bidder and may assign to Bidder all or some of RR Auction’s rights against the Consignor with respect to such lot or property. Upon such disclosure and/or assignment, all responsibility and liability of RR Auction, if any, with respect to said lot or item shall automatically terminate related to or arising from these Conditions of Sale or such transaction operating as a complete waiver and general release by Bidder as to RR Auction and its agents, contractors, and affiliates, as to any and all claims concerning or related to the item, if any . RR Auction shall be entitled to retain the premiums and other amounts paid to RR Auction by Consignor only. The rights and remedies provided herein are for the original Bidder only and they may not be assigned or relied upon by any transferee or assignee under any circumstances. 16.4 Authenticity Challenge Process (1) If Bidder wishes to dispute or challenge the Authenticity of the lot or item (including asserting that it is incorrect), Bidder must adhere to the following procedure: Within 30 days of the Auction Date, Bidder must present written evidence to RR Auction, that the lot is not authentic as determined by a known expert in the field (and one recognized by RR Auction within its discretion) and send the physical item or lot at issue to RR Auction along with all evidence relied upon by Bidder for contesting the Authenticity. (“Authenticity Challenge Process”) “Authenticity” shall mean a gross discrepancy in the between the description, genuiness, or attribution of the item as represented by RR Auction in the Catalog or at the auction, and the item. If RR Auction concurs that the lot is not Authentic as was represented (it is sole discretion), Bidder’s sole and exclusive remedy as against RR Auction (inclusive of its affiliates, agents, employees, and contractors) shall be a refund of the purchase price of the subject item paid by Bidder, with no other costs, liabilities or amounts recoverable by Bidder. If RR Auction does not agree with the assertion by Bidder, then the Parties shall follow the dispute resolution procedures of these Conditions of Sale. Strict adherence to the Authenticity Challenge Process is a condition of standing for Bidder to initiate suit or claim. (2) So long as Bidder has complied with the Authenticity Challenge Process, any claim, suit or action, by Bidder concerning an AC or Certification of Authenticity, or related to the authenticity of the item must, without any exception, be brought within one (1) year of Auction Date and is subject to the other limitations and conditions stated in the Conditions of Sale. 16.5 Other Issues. Any dispute or claim by Bidder against RR Auction (or its affiliates, directors, employees, officers, agents, or contractors)) other than Authenticity, concerning any item or lot bid upon, or purchased, including value, title, condition, bidding process, or description must be asserted (if at all) in the following manner: (1) If the description of any lot in the Catalog is materially or grossly incorrect (e.g., gross cataloging error), or there is any other gross material issue pertaining to the item or lot, the item or lot may be returned if returned within five (5) calendar days of receipt, and received by RR Auction no later than twenty-one (21) calendar days after the Auction Date with explanation in writing.. If there is any discrepancy between the description in the Catalog and a certificate of auction, then the description in the certificate of auction (“Lot Challenge Process”). This paragraph shall constitute Bidder’s sole right with respect to the return of items, and no refunds shall be given for any items not returned to and received by RR Auction within the period of time stated herein or not materially or grossly in deviation from the description. Such a refund is subject to RR Auction’s sole discretionary review, and any request for refund must be made concurrently with returning the physical item or lot to RR Auction. Any item not returned within said frame will constitute acceptance of the item and a waiver and release of any and all claims by Bidder pertaining to the item other than with respect to authenticity; and
(2) Provided that the Bidder has engaged in the Lot Challenge Process, any claim concerning such must be brought no later than one (1) year of the Auction Date for the item or lot at issue and is subject to the other limitations and conditions stated in the Conditions of Sale. NO RETURN OR REFUND OF ANY AUCTION LOT WILL BE CONSIDERED OR PROVIDED EXCEPT AS PROVIDED IN THESE CONDITIONS OF SALE AND BIDDERS OR AS MAY BE REQUIRED BY LAW. FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH SUCH SHALL BE A COMPLETE DEFENSE TO ANY CLAIMS BY BIDDER RELATED TO THE CONDITIONS OF SALE, ANY AUCTION OR BID. 16.6 LIMITATION OF LIABILITY. For any and all claims by Bidder arising out of or related to this Agreement, Bidder’s viewing, bid, or purchase of items, or any agreement between the Parties, or otherwise, Bidder agrees that to the fullest extent such can be limited under the law, Bidder shall have no right to recover and hereby waives any and all rights to recover from against RR Auction or its affiliates, directors, employees, officers, agents, or contractors, consequential or indirect damages, lost profits damages, punitive, exemplary, statutory (or multiplier damages), physical or emotional distress damages, general or special damages of any kind (beyond amounts actually paid by Bidder for item(s) at issue), and in the event of recovery of any damages whatsoever, such shall be limited by the amounts actually paid by Bidder to RR Auction for the item(s) at issue in such claim, or if no money was paid to RR Auction by Bidder for items at issue, or there items are at issue, the amount of $150.00. Section 17 RR Auction’s Additional Services For Bidders who do not remove purchased property from RR Auction’s premises, RR Auction, in its sole discretion and solely as a service and accommodation to Bidders, may arrange to have purchased lots packed, insured and forwarded at the sole request, expense, and risk of Bidder. RR Auction assumes no and disclaims all responsibility and liability for acts or omissions in such packing or shipping by RR Auction or other packers and carriers, whether or not recommended by RR Auction. RR Auction assumes no and disclaims all responsibility and liability for damage to frames, glass or other breakable items. Where RR Auction arranges and bills for such services via invoice, RR Auction will include an administration charge. Section 18 Headings Headings are for convenience only and shall not be used to interpret the substantive sections to which they refer. Section 19 Entire Agreement Except to the extent Bidder is also a consignor (in which case the terms of the consignment agreement shall also govern), these Conditions of Sale constitute the entire agreement between the Parties together with the terms and conditions contained in the auction Registration Form. They may not be amended, modified or superseded except in a signed writing executed by all parties. No oral or written statement by anyone employed by RR Auction or acting as agent or representative of RR Auction may amend, modify, waive or supersede the terms herein unless such amendment, waiver or modification is contained in a writing signed by all parties. If any section of these Conditions of Sale or any term or provision of any section is held to be invalid, void, or unenforceable by any court or arbitrator of competent jurisdiction, the remaining parts of the agreement and remainder of the sections or terms and provisions of the section and all sections shall continue in full force and effect without being impaired or invalidated in any way. Section 20 Governing Law and Enforcement 20.1 The Parties agree that all agreements between the Parties including but not limited to these Conditions of Sale are entered into in Boston, Massachusetts, no matter where Bidder is situated and no matter by what means or where Bidder was informed of the Auction and regardless of whether catalogs, materials, or other communications were received by Bidder in another location. 20.2 The Parties agree that these Conditions of Sale, any other related agreement(s), along with all claims between the Parties, including those arising out of or related to such are governed by the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, without regard for its conflict of laws principles. The Parties agree that any dispute between the Parties, including but not limited to those related to or arising out of these Conditions of Sale, or related to or arising out of any other related agreement(s) shall be submitted to confidential binding arbitration (the ”Arbitration”) before a single Arbitrator of the American Arbitration
Association (the “AAA”) The Parties agree that the Arbitration shall be conducted pursuant to the commercial rules of the AAA in Boston, Massachusetts, unless the Consumer Arbitration Rules apply, in which case, such rules and venue will govern. In the event that the Parties cannot agree on the selection of the Arbitrator, then the Arbitrator shall be selected by the AAA. The prevailing Party in the Arbitration shall also recover all of its related fees and costs, whether before or after the formal institution of the Arbitration, including but not limited to its reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs, if RR Auction prevails, such recovery, in addition to all remedies available at agreement or law, shall include the Buyer’s Premium as defined in these Conditions of Sale. Federal arbitration law, including the Federal Arbitration Act apply to this agreement to arbitrate and its related provisions. The arbitration and all related proceedings shall be held strictly confidential and all documents and discovery shall be held confidential and not used, published or disclosed publically or to anyone outside the Parties or expert consultants or counsel who shall agree to hold such confidential. 20.3 The Parties consent to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as exclusive jurisdiction and venue for all claims between the Parties except as provided specifically herein and may seek confirmation of the decision in the Arbitration pursuant to the Federal Arbitration Act in any Court of competent jurisdiction, including the courts of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts or the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. To the extent such is necessary under the law, RR Auction may enforce the Arbitration award against Bidder and any related Party in any court of competent jurisdiction. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as RR Auction consenting to jurisdiction or venue in any location outside of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Section 21: State-by-State Law Issues This Auction is being conducted in and the sale shall take place in the State of Massachusetts. Notwithstanding, the foregoing, should these terms and conditions violate the law of any State should that state’s law be found to govern, or any provision herein determined to be invalid, the clause itself and the remainder of the Agreement shall be valid to the fullest extent allowed. Also, to the extent other states law apply to any transaction arising out of the Agreement (without admitting such), RR Auction states: For Residents of California: SALE OF AUTOGRAPHED COLLECTIBLES: AS REQUIRED BY LAW, A DEALER WHO SELLS TO A CONSUMER ANY COLLECTIBLE DESCRIBED AS BEING AUTOGRAPHED MUST PROVIDE A WRITTEN EXPRESS WARRANTY AT THE TIME OF SALE. THIS DEALER MAY BE SURETY BONDED OR OTHERWISE INSURED TO ENSURE THE AUTHENTICITY OF ANY AUTOGRAPHED COLLECTIBLE SOLD BY THIS DEALER. A written express warranty is provided with each autographed collectible, as required by law. This dealer may be surety bonded or otherwise insured to ensure the authenticity of any autographed collectible sold by this dealer.
THE PARTIES MAY NOT BRING CLAIMS AGAINST EACH OTHER AS A CLASS OR CLASS MEMBER IN ANY CLAIMED CLASS, OR IN A REPRESENTATIVE ACTION UNLESS OTHERWISE AGREED. UNLESS OTHERWISE AGREED, THE CLAIMS AGAINST EACH OF THE OTHER CANNOT BE CONSOLIDATED OR JOINED WITH MORE THAN ONE ADDITIONAL PERSON OR ENTITIES’ CLAIMS. NO INJUNCTIVE OR DECLATORY RELIEF SOUGHT BY BIDDER IF ANY, CAN AFFECT OR BE ORDERED TO AFFECT ANY OTHER BIDDERS OR PERSONS.
Section 22 Glossary of Condition terms
20.4 Except as provided specifically in these Conditions of Sale in Bidder’s Remedies against RR Auction (along with its affiliates, directors, agents, officers, employees, and contractors) for any dispute, claim, cause of action related to or arising out of these Conditions of Sale or any other related agreement(s), brought by Bidder must be brought within the earlier of the Auction Date as it pertains to the item(s) at issue or no later than one (1) year of the acts, omissions or circumstances occurred giving rise to the alleged claim, without exception. This provision is intended as a full, complete and absolute bar to and release of any claims by Bidder initiated after one (1) year of such acts, omissions or circumstances. The Parties agree further that these waiver provisions are intended to be binding in the event of any dispute, specifically including but not limited to third party claims and cross-actions brought by Bidder. These provisions are consideration for the execution of these Conditions of Sale.
Use of the following terms constitutes an opinion as follows:
20.5 To the fullest extent under applicable law and except as specifically stated herein Bidder hereby holds harmless, releases and discharges RR Auction and its agents, officer’s directors, affiliates, successors, and assigns from any and all claims, liabilities, obligations, promises, agreements, damages, causes of action, suits, demands, losses, debts, and expenses of any nature whatsoever, known or unknown, suspected or unsuspected existing prior to these Conditions of Sale. Bidder agrees to the Conditions of Sale and upon each instance that Bidder participates in any auction, bids, or otherwise agrees to such terms and reaffirms this release as of the date of so participating or agreeing unless Bidder otherwise provides clear written notice to RR Auction prior to so bidding. 20.6 The Bidder hereby agrees that RR Auction shall be entitled to present these Conditions of Sale to a court in any jurisdiction other than set forth in this paragraph as conclusive evidence of the Parties agreement, and the Parties further agree that the court shall immediately dismiss any action filed in such jurisdiction. 20.7 Liquidated Damages for Specific Breaches In the event that Bidder provides false information in connection with registering for bidding, fails to correct or update information or breaches the Conditions of Sale by failing to pay the purchase price when due after becoming the winning bidder, as liquidated damages associated with such breaches, R&R may obtain from Bidder the greater of (1) 150% the reserve of the item (if any); (2) the amount bidder bid; or (3), the full amount that bidder would have otherwise paid. Bidder will also be liable for an additional 20% of such amount to account for additional administrative costs, shipping, additional advertising, and other damages and liabilities fees that are difficult to calculate on an item-by-item basis. 20.8 Indemnity. Bidder agrees to defend, indemnify, hold harmless RR Auction (along with its officers, directors, agents, contractors, and affiliates) from and against any and all claims, costs, fees, damages, and liabilities arising out of or related to these Conditions of Sale, view of items, or lots, bidding, or participation in any auction by RR Auction, and/or or in any way connected to any item you viewed, bid upon or purchased through RR Auction.
Information provided to prospective Bidders with respect of any lot, including any pre-sale estimate, whether written or oral, and information in any catalogue, condition or other report, commentary or valuation, is not a representation of fact but rather a statement of opinion held by RR Auction.
VERY FINE describes an item believed to be in virtually flawless condition, and is used sparingly for items of exceptionally attractive appearance. FINE is the most common statement of condition, and applies to most items that we offer. It describes items that we believe to show expected handling wear, generally acceptable random flaws (such as light creases, small bends, etc.), and an overall appearance that is pleasing to the majority of collectors. VERY GOOD describes an item that we believe exhibits more moderate flaws (such as toning, light staining, professional reinforcements or repairs, etc.). Most collectors would be comfortable with items in very good condition, and this would be the expected condition for many formats (early presidential documents, for example). GOOD describes an item which we believe to have obvious visible flaws, including heavy wear, missing portions, or repairs that affect appearance; generally items in this condition are offered only if an item is otherwise believed to be exceedingly rare or important. Bidder may call and request further details and information about RR Auction’s opinions concerning any item via phone or email which shall provided in RR Auction’s discretion. Certificate of Auction, Certificate of Authenticity and Goods Acquired: Bidder warrants that Bidder (and its agents, assigns, successors, and affiliates) shall not purposely deface, destroy, dismember, cut-up into parts the item or Lot purchased at auction from RR Auction and in the event such shall occur whether purposefully or accidently, Bidder (and its agents, assigns, successors, and affiliates) shall refrain from advertising, promoting, or marketing the item as having been purchased from RR Auction and shall in no event display, expressly claim, or imply that the item was certified or auctioned in such state by RR Auction. As liquidated damages for such breach, Bidder agrees to be liable to RR Auction for the greater of the amount of three (3) times the hammer price of the item along with all other fees and costs as otherwise provided in this Terms of Sale.
Since 1976
Let’s make history—together For over 40 years, relationships have been the backbone of RR Auction. We have made it a priority to keep our consignors informed and involved, encouraging them to share their voices, to instill their knowledge, and to forge a partnership based on our shared passion for history. With a mutual desire to achieve greatness, these relationships are at the heart of our success.
RR Auction
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Est. 1976
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www.RRAuction.com
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(800) 937-3880
WE ARE CURRENTLY SEEKING CONSIGNMENTS FOR MANY OF OUR EXCITING SALES
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SPACE EXPLORATION SPORTS & OLYMPICS MARVELS OF MODERN MUSIC REMARKABLE RARITIES
www.RRAuction.com
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(603) 732-4280
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Boston, Massachusetts