Stephen Hawking’s Papers And Wheelchair Are Now Available For Auction

Christie's has announced just recently that it would auction off 22 things from the renowned physicist’s work and life. Stephen Hawking passed on earlier in this year. Out of the items available for this auction, there will be an early version motorized wheelchair. This wheelchair helps Prof. Hawking in his battle against amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, which left him close to completely paralyzed. The wheelchair is just too iconic to end up in some private collections, it should, hopefully, be in a museum.

This auction is part of the On the Shoulders of Giants: Newton, Darwin, Einstein, Hawking auction lot. This lot has publications and papers from numerous iconic scientists. They will all be displayed in London from the 30^th of October. Bids are accepted until the end of November 8. It is agreed that Hawking’s belongings will be the most appealing for both museums and private collectors.

The dating-to-1988 wheelchair’s worth is projected as upwards of 20000 USD. But it is not the only thing there. There is also a awards and medals collection between 1975 and 1999, a script of an episode of The Simpsons that Hawking appeared in. In addition, there will be framed copies of the invitations for the party Hawking hosted for time-travelers.

The most worthy piece will be his Ph.D. thesis in 1965’s copy. After all, we only know of five such copies. This one has an equation hand drawn by him in addition to his signature.  The Ph.D. thesis was finished after Hawking was diagnosed with ALS. By then, he must rely on Jane Wilde to type the documents and add the complicated math equations. The expected worth of this copy will be between $130,000 and $200,000.

We hope that most of these pieces can be obtained by institutions that can make them accessible to the public. I doubt Hawking would like seeing his works hidden in some private collectors’ hands. Anyway, the profit will go into the fund of charities like The Stephen Hawking Foundation to fund particle physics, astrophysics, and cosmology or MNDA to support those who live with ALS.

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