Red leather wheelchair by British physicist Stephen Hawking sold at auction in London
The wheelchair used by renowned physicist Stephen Hawking was sold at auction for $ 540,600, and a copy of his doctoral dissertation collected more than $ 1.05 million. Recall that the red leather chair was used by a scientist after he was paralyzed due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis ( Lou Gehrig's disease). Initially, they expected $ 26,900 per lot.
Auction House Assistant Christie's posing with a motorized wheelchair
Stephen Hawking at Cambridge (January 1993)
The wheelchair sales will be distributed between two charitable organizations: the Stephen Hawking Foundation and the Motor Neuron Disease Association. Hawking's thesis from 1965 “Properties of expanding universes” was sold for 1.05 million dollars, which is 3 times higher than its preliminary estimate.
One of five famous copies of Stephen Hawking's doctoral thesis.
Hawking was diagnosed with the disease at age 22 and was given only a few years of life. However, the scientist refuted the assumptions and lived to 76 years. During his work, he was able to expand his understanding of black holes and the origins of the universe. He became a famous scholar by writing the best-selling books and even managed to take the lead in the episode of the popular animated series “The Simpsons”.
Stephen Hawking voiced his own character in the animated series “The Simpsons”
Production script for episode with Stephen Hawking
The script for his episode is priced at $ 11,135, and the collection of medals and awards collected more than $ 530,000. His daughter Lucy reported that the auction “allowed fans to acquire some of the memory of our father’s unusual life in the form of a small set of amazing items.” His children hope to preserve the scientific archive for the nation.
Christie's auction house is negotiating the transfer of the archive to the British authorities instead of inheritance tax. The nine-day auction “On the shoulders of giants” also sold items belonging to other great scientists, including Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin and Albert Einstein.
