University Archives is ushering in the New Year with a new sale: Rare Autographs, Manuscripts, Books & Memorabilia. Over 450 lots of outstanding historical materials will pass the auction block, representing the best of U.S. Presidents, Aviation/Space, Art, Music, Science, Sports, and so much more!
U.S. Presidents
Lot 51 is an autograph letter signed by Thomas Jefferson as President, dated October 14, 1801, appointing Connecticut congressman Gideon Granger as Postmaster General. Granger would serve in this role through the Madison administration, making him the longest-serving Postmaster General to date.
Lot 50 is an exquisite miniature of Thomas Jefferson strongly attributed to Robert Field, paired with an intricate hairwork jewelry locket. On one side is a superbly rendered watercolor portrait of Jefferson, and on the other a braided design of two-toned white and auburn hair.
Lot 50, Thomas Jefferson Miniature with Hair
Lot 81 is an Abraham Lincoln signed check from Springfield, Illinois dated September 28, 1857. Lincoln paid about $14 to Reuben F. Ruth, a local saddle and harness maker, from accounts he had held at the Springfield Marine & Fire Insurance Company since 1853. The same day, Lincoln also paid a furniture dealer, several newspaper publishers, and an antislavery settler.
Lot 129 is a franking signature by George Washington, PSA/DNA slabbed and certified authentic. The cover dated January 5, 1780 was written in Morris Town, New Jersey and addressed to Colonel Stephen Moylan of Colchester, Connecticut, the leader of “Moylan’s Horse,” or the 4th Continental Light Dragoons. Later that year, Moylan’s cavalry was involved in major Revolutionary War engagements at Springfield and Bull’s Ferry.
Art & Music
Lot 273 is Bob Dylan’s lyrics to the 1963 anthem “Blowing In the Wind” handwritten and signed by him at New York’s St. Regis Hotel in 2011. The song features prominently in the just-released Oscar buzzworthy biopic A Complete Unknown, starring Timothée Chalamet as the 21-year-old folk singer. Accompanied by a COA from Jeff Rosen, Dylan’s manager.
Lot 138 is an astounding collection of 70+ original metal (copper and steel) etching plates and woodblocks, 1887-1975, sourced by a New York art dealer. The group represents 30+ international Modern artists of the highest caliber, including: Pablo Picasso (3), Salvador Dali (5), Marc Chagall (1), Georges Braque (3), Alberto Giacometti (1), Georges Rouault (9), Marcel Duchamp (2), Jean Cocteau (2), Pierre Bonnard (2), Marie Laurencin (7), Leonard Baskin (2), Wilfredo Lam (1), André Derain (3), Raphael Soyer (6), Joseph Stella (4), and many others. Some of the plates and blocks were directly artist-signed, being examples of the artists’ original signatures. The consignor is offering custom matting and framing of select companion prints.
Lot 138, NY Art Dealer Collection of Original Plates & Blocks
Lot 358 is a ca. 1889 wrought-iron architectural artifact salvaged from Paris’s most beloved architectural landmark, the Eiffel Tower. Stairway Section #6, comprised of twelve steps, originally connected the third floor to the tower and was dismantled in 1983 when elevators were installed. The fragment is impressive in size, measuring approximately 13.5 feet x 6.5 feet, and is housed in a special cradle and trailer. Provenance information from 1983-2005 is provided.
Science
Lot 407 is an original plane geometry drawing by Albert Einstein, accompanied by three lines of explanation in his hand, and signed by him as “A.E.” This wonderful item dated ca. May 12, 1952 was Einstein’s attempt to help a 15-year-old high school student named Johanna Mankiewicz from Los Angeles, California who had contacted him regarding an especially baffling external tangent geometry problem. Einstein was frequently contacted either in person or by mail by students of all ages imploring for help with their math homework; here, Einstein coyly offers the steps to the solution but not the answer.
Lot 407, Detail of Albert Einstein Signed Original Drawing
Early America
Lot 246 is an autograph endorsement signed by Benjamin Franklin in his role as 6th President of Pennsylvania, PSA/DNA slabbed and graded NM-MT 8. In this communication dated March 2, 1787, Franklin gave directions to the Commissioners of Bankrupt, a judicial entity formed to resolve legal proceedings related to insolvency. Three months later, from May-September 1787, Franklin served as a delegate to the 1787 Constitutional Convention.
Military
Lot 321 is a PSA/DNA slabbed and certified Type 1 photograph by Robert Sargent, U.S. Coast Guard Chief Photographer’s Mate, who snapped one of the most chilling photographs of World War II. Sargent’s black and white photograph, here entitled “Taxis to Hell – and back – Into the Jaws of Death,” shows members from Company E, 16th Infantry, 1st Division, wading into the icy waters of Omaha Beach on D-Day.
Lot 321, Robert Argent’s D-Day Landing Type 1 Photograph
Lot 311 is a Civil War-dated archive of 300+ handwritten letters exchanged between David Masten of Company E, New York 143rd Infantry, and his wife Ella Masten. Masten was also a musician and later served in the ambulance corps; his recollections of the Chattanooga-Ringgold Campaign, the Atlanta Campaign, Sherman’s March to the Sea, and the Carolinas Campaign make for riveting reading.
Business
Lot 201 is a March 13, 1962 Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company stock certificate signed by Warren Buffett, the third-richest man in the world. There are only eight known examples of similar Buffett signed stock certificates, including one in a museum!
These are just a few of the wonderful items in our next auction. Please see our fully illustrated catalog for more information. We hope you can join us!
