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Lot #125
Nikola Tesla Autograph Letter Signed

"My new work is progressing fast"—Tesla writes from the Gerlach Hotel, now known as the 'Radio Wave Building'

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Estimate: $40000+
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Description

"My new work is progressing fast"—Tesla writes from the Gerlach Hotel, now known as the 'Radio Wave Building'

ALS signed “N. Tesla,” one page, 8 x 10.75, The Gerlach Hotel letterhead, March 21, 1895. Handwritten letter to Mrs. Anthony, in full: "It was very kind of you to write me for I needed such proofs of sympathy. Please accept my most sincere thanks. I have gone through an experience which can not fail to leave some trace, but I am not broken in spirit, quite the contrary, my energies have risen to the occasion. My new work is progressing fast and soon, I hope, you will hear from me more pleasant news." In fine condition.

In August 1892, Tesla moved his lab to 33-35 South Fifth Avenue where he took up the fourth floor; he remained there for two-and-a-half years before the building burnt down. The New York Times quoted Tesla when reporting on the fire: 'I am in too much grief to talk. What can I say? The work of half my lifetime, very nearly all my mechanical instruments and scientific apparatus, that it has taken years to perfect, swept away in a fire that lasted only an hour or two. How can I estimate the loss in mere dollars and cents? Everything is gone. I must begin over again.' He relocated to The Gerlach Hotel—now known as the 'Radio Wave Building'—where he lived before the end of the century and experimented with radio waves in 1896.

Auction Info

  • Auction Title: Fine Autograph and Artifacts
  • Dates: #635 - Ended May 11, 2022





This item is Pre-Certified by PSA/DNA
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