Einstein Letter Defending his Jewish Heritage Sells for $134,344

Los Angeles - A letter by Albert Einstein on the Jewish People’s rights to defend themselves sold Friday morning for $134,344 at Nate D. Sanders Auctions. The letter received 23 bids.     

Albert Einstein wrote the June 10, 1939 letter, postmarked from Princeton to Dr. Maurice Lenz in New York. Einstein wrote in full, “May I offer my sincere congratulations to you on the splendid work you have undertaken on behalf of the refugees during Dedication Week.  The power of resistance which has enabled the Jewish people to survive for thousands of years has been based to a large extent on traditions of mutual helpfulness. In these years of affliction our readiness to help one another is being put to an especially severe test. May we stand this test as well as did our fathers before us. We have no other means of self-defense than our solidarity and our knowledge that the cause for which we are suffering is a momentous and sacred cause. It must be a source of deep gratification to you to be making so important a contribution toward rescuing our persecuted fellow-Jews from their calamitous peril and leading them toward a better future...[signed] A.Einstein.''

Einstein had long worked to save European Jews by issuing affidavits.

Bidding for the letter began at $12,000.