A new world record at auction for a letter by Charles Darwin was set at Bonhams New York yesterday (21 September) at the History of Science and Technology sale. The highly personal and unusually pointed statement on Darwin’s lack of belief in the Bible and in Jesus Christ as the son of God was sold for $197,000, (£127,000) having been estimated at $70,000-90,000 (£45,000-60,000).
Darwin
Darwin’s letter is a reply to a young barrister named Francis McDermott who wrote on November 23, 1880 with a very unusual request: “…If I am to have pleasure in reading your books I must feel that at the end I shall not have lost my faith in the New Testament. My reason in writing to you therefore is to ask you to give me a Yes or No to the question Do you believe in the New Testament….” McDermott continues by promising not to publicize Darwin’s reply in the “theological papers”.
Darwin responded the very next day:
“Private
Nov. 24 1880
Dear Sir,
I am sorry to have to
inform you that I do
not believe in the Bible
as a divine revelation
& therefore not in Jesus
Christ as the son of God.
Yours faithfully
Ch. Darwin“
McDermott was true to his word and this letter was unknown to scholars for over 100 years. The subject of Darwin’s religiosity had long been a cause of vehement debate. Darwin himself largely refrained from public comment, probably to respect the feelings of his friends and family. Just a month before penning this note, Darwin wrote to the prominent atheist Edward Aveling, “It has … been always my object to avoid writing on religion, and I have confined myself to science.”
Commenting on the letter, Darwin’s great-great-grandson Matthew Chapman said, “You have to remember this was written two years before he died. You say what mean. I don’t think you are inclined to lie or showboat. You know you are facing death at that point and so I think this is a clear and honest expression of his atheism.”
Darwin studied theology at Christ’s College, Cambridge at the suggestion of his father but preferred to spend his time collecting specimens with a select circle of naturalists. It was Darwin’s mentor John Henslow, a clergyman and a professor of Mineralogy at Cambridge, who nominated the 22-year old Darwin for the history-making voyage on the Beagle. On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection was published in 1859 and it was then that Darwin’s faith in religion or lack thereof became the subject of public controversy. Darwin died in 1882, the greatest naturalist of his age. Rumors of a deathbed conversion were widely believed but firmly denied by his daughter.
New York – Una lettera scritta a mano e firmata da Charles Darwin in asta all’evento Bonhams “Storia della Scienza e della Tecnologia” del 21 settembre prossimo a New York. Stima $ 70,000-90,000.
Una dichiarazione molto personale e insolitamente precisa sulla mancanza di fede nella Bibbia e in Gesù Cristo come il Figlio di Dio da parte di Darwin.
La lettera di Darwin è una risposta a un giovane avvocato di nome Francis McDermott che il 23 novembre 1880 gli fece una richiesta molto particolare: “… Il piacere di leggere i vostri libri non farà certo vacillare la mia fede nel Nuovo Testamento. La mia ragione di scrivere a voi quindi è per chiedervi di darmi un Sì o No alla domanda: Credete nel Nuovo Testamento?”. McDermott continua con la promessa di non diffondere la risposta di Darwin nelle “carte teologiche”.
Darwin rispose il giorno seguente:
“24 novembre 1880. Egregio Signore, Mi dispiace di dover informarvi che non credo nella Bibbia come rivelazione divina e quindi non in Gesù Cristo come il figlio di Dio. Cordiali Saluti Ch. Darwin”
McDermott è stato fedele alla sua parola tanto che questa lettera è rimasta sconosciuta agli studiosi per oltre 100 anni.
Il tema della religiosità di Darwin è stato a lungo motivo di accesi dibattiti. Darwin stesso si astenne di parlare dell’argomento in pubblico, probabilmente per rispettare i sentimenti dei suoi amici e familiari. Appena un mese prima di scrivere questa missiva, Darwin scrisse al noto ateo Edward Aveling, “E’ stato sempre il mio obiettivo di evitare di scrivere di religione limitandomi alla scienza.”
Darwin studiò teologia al Christ’s College, Cambridge, su suggerimento del padre, ma preferiva trascorrere il suo tempo libero a raccogliere campioni con un ristretto cerchio di naturalisti. E ‘stato il suo mentore John Henslow, un sacerdote e professore di Mineralogia all’Università di Cambridge, a suggerire la candidatura del 22enne Darwin per il celebre viaggio sul Beagle. L’origine delle specie per mezzo della selezione naturale è stato pubblicato nel 1859 e fu allora che il rapporto di Darwin con la religione divenne oggetto di controversia pubblica. Darwin morì nel 1882, essendo il più grande naturalista del suo tempo. Le voci di una sua conversione sul letto di morte sono state ampiamente credute ma sempre fermamente negate da sua figlia.
New York – A letter handwritten and signed by Charles Darwin features in the History of Science and Technology auction on September 21 in New York. A highly personal and unusually pointed statement on Darwin’s lack of belief in the Bible and in Jesus Christ as the son of God, it is estimated at $70,000-90,000.
Darwin’s letter is a reply to a young barrister named Francis McDermott who wrote on November 23, 1880 with a very unusual request: “…If I am to have pleasure in reading your books I must feel that at the end I shall not have lost my faith in the New Testament. My reason in writing to you therefore is to ask you to give me a Yes or No to the question Do you believe in the New Testament….” McDermott continues by promising not to publicize Darwin’s reply in the “theological papers”. Darwin responded the very next day:
“Private Nov. 24 1880 Dear Sir, I am sorry to have to inform you that I do not believe in the Bible as a divine revelation & therefore not in Jesus Christ as the son of God. Yours faithfully Ch. Darwin“
McDermott was true to his word and this letter was unknown to scholars for over 100 years. The subject of Darwin’s religiosity had long been a cause of vehement debate. Darwin himself largely refrained from public comment, probably to respect the feelings of his friends and family. Just a month before penning this note, Darwin wrote to the prominent atheist Edward Aveling, “It has … been always my object to avoid writing on religion, and I have confined myself to science.”
Darwin studied theology at Christ’s College, Cambridge at the suggestion of his father but preferred to spend his time collecting specimens with a select circle of naturalists. It was Darwin’s mentor John Henslow, a clergyman and a professor of Mineralogy at Cambridge, who nominated the 22-year old Darwin for the history-making voyage on the Beagle. On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection was published in 1859 and it was then that Darwin’s faith in religion or lack thereof became the subject of public controversy. Darwin died in 1882, the greatest naturalist of his age. Rumors of a deathbed conversion were widely believed but firmly denied by his daughter.
Un cronometro marino Robert Molyneux utilizzato per il secondo e il terzo viaggio di Charles Darwin sul celebre brigantino Beagle sarà offerto in asta alla Fine Clocks Sale Auction di Bonhams a New Bond Street a Londra il 10 dicembre prossimo con una stima di £ 30.000-50.000.
Si tratta di un esemplare unico proveniente da collezione privata, a bordo assieme a Darwin durante i viaggi che decretarono la formulazione della teoria dell’evoluzione. Charles Darwin visitò le isole Galapagos nel 1835, durante queste esplorazioni registrò i campioni di flora e fauna che lo avrebbero portato alla sua rivoluzionaria teoria dell’evoluzione per selezione naturale, pubblicata nel 1859.
Darwin
The “Beagle”
L’HMS Beagle era un brigantino riadattato a nave oceanografica ed utilizzato nelle tre celebri spedizioni. Quando il Beagle lasciò Plymouth per il suo secondo viaggio, nel mese di dicembre 1831, la nave portava un giovane naturalista, Charles Darwin. Era stato reclutato con la responsabilità di raccogliere, osservare, e prendere nota di tutto ciò che appartenesse alla sfera naturale.
A parte la missione di Darwin, la missione era destinata anche a completare l’opera del viaggio precedente, e cioè il rilievo della costa meridionale del Sud America e la registrazione della latitudine e la longitudine di ciascun porto di scalo. A tal fine, il Beagle fu corredato di 22 cronometri di bordo tra i quali quello relativo a questo post. Esso è uno dei soli undici che hanno completato il viaggio di sette anni a bordo del famoso brigantino.
Questo cronometro era ancora bordo quando il Beagle ha intrapreso il suo terzo e ultimo viaggio nel 1837 alla volta della costa australiana. I cronometri sono stati da sempre utilizzati dalle navi in mare per la determinazione accurata della longitudine. Costruiti a partire dal XVIII secolo, sono stati utilizzati ampiamente fino al XX secolo. Questi orologi dovevano restare affidabili pur nelle mutevoli condizioni ambientali cui li sottoponeva la navigazione in mare aperto.
Per la prima volta utilizzati su una nave da James Cook nel 1772, sono diventati una presenza fissa dal 1818 per le navi da guerra. Tre cronometri erano il minimo indispensabile per essere in grado di identificatene uno divenuto impreciso. Al tempo dei viaggi del Beagle, l’uso di cronometri marini era diventato routinario e portarne a bordo 22 era normale in vista di un lungo viaggio.
The “Irresistble”
Questo cronometro è stato uno dei sei posseduti personalmente dal capitano Robert FitzRoy, comandante del Beagle durante il viaggio di Darwin. Fu così affidabile che l’Ammiragliato (in passato l’autorità del Regno Unito responsabile del comando della Royal Navy) decise di rivolgersi a FitzRoy per riacquistarlo nel 1837. Il governo ha continuato a impiegare il cronometro su varie navi, l’ultima delle quali di particolare interesse.
L’ultimo cronometro utilizzato su una nave inglese è quello appartenuto alla corazzata “Irresistble” affondata dallo scoppio di una mina nello stretto dei Dardanelli durante la prima guerra mondiale nel marzo del 1915. Una mina che uccise circa 150 marinai dell’equipaggio.Il costruttore del cronometro, Robert Molyneux, era un orologiaio di tutto rispetto con sede a Londra.
A second previously unrecorded marine chronometer used on the 2nd and 3rd voyages of HMS Beagle will be offered in the Fine Clocks Sale on December 10th at Bonhams New Bond Street salerooms, carrying a pre-sale estimate of £30,000-50,000. It is the only known marine chronometer in private hands that was present on board HMS Beagle when Charles Darwin visited the Galapagos Islands in 1835, when he recorded and collected specimens of the flora and fauna that would lead to his momentous theory of evolution by natural selection, published in his seminal work ‘The Origin of Species‘ in 1859.
HMS Beagle was an Admiralty survey ship sent on three major expeditions. The first (1826–1830) was to survey the coast of South America, accompanying HMS Adventure. The second expedition (1831–1836) was to build on the work of the first in South America, and then to go onward to establish a chain of linked reference points encircling the globe. The third expedition (1837–1843) surveyed the coast of Australia.
When HMS Beagle left Plymouth for her second voyage in December 1831, the ship carried a young naturalist, Charles Darwin. He had been recruited with the responsibility of “collecting, observing, and noting, anything worthy to be noted in Natural History”. Aside from Darwin’s particular remit, the voyage was tasked with completing the work of the previous journey, in surveying the southern coast of South America, and recording the latitude and longitude of each port of call. For this purpose, the Beagle carried 22 chronometers on board, including the present lot- which is one of only 11 that completed the seven year voyage on board the Beagle.
By the time the Beagle returned to England in October 1836, Darwin had sailed 40,000 miles around the world and collected more than 5,000 specimens. His notes show that he already understood how his experiences and finds were likely to challenge the established view of the unchanging nature of species.
This chronometer was again on board when the Beagle undertook its third and final voyage in 1837, surveying large parts of the uncharted Australian coast. The expedition identified the Adelaide and Victoria rivers and surveyed the Torres Strait and the Gulf of Carpentaria, before exploring northern and north-west Australia, the Bass Strait and Tasmania.
Chronometers were widely used by ships at sea for the accurate determination of longitude. First built in the 18th century, they were utilised extensively by mariners through to the early 20th century. These timepieces needed to remain accurate while subjected to the motions of a ship at sea and through extreme changes in temperature.
First carried on a survey ship by James Cook on his second voyage in 1772, from 1818 it became standard for the Admiralty to issue chronometers to naval ships. Three chronometers was the minimum necessary to be able to identify whether one had become unacceptably inaccurate. By the time of the Beagle voyages, the use of marine chronometers had become routine and, as mentioned, the ship carried 22 on the second voyage, to allow for mechanical failure over the lengthy journey.
This chronometer was one of six owned personally by Captain Robert FitzRoy, commander of the Beagle during Darwin’s voyage. It performed so well that the Admiralty decided to purchase it from FitzRoy in 1837. The government continued to employ the chronometer on various ships, the last being of particular interest.
The date of transfer is not mentioned in the ledgers, but the final entry reads that the timepiece was ‘Lost in “Irresistible” 1916 July 3’. This refers to the sinking of HMS Irresistible (a ‘Formidable’ class battleship) off the coast of Turkey. Originally commissioned in 1902, with the outbreak of World War I the Irresistible was sent to serve in the Dardanelles campaign, bombarding Turkish coastal forts. However in March 1915 she struck a mine which killed about 150 of her crew. Badly damaged, the Irresistible was abandoned by the survivors and left to drift, and eventually sink.
The manufacturer of the chronometer, Robert Molyneux, was a highly respected clock and chronometer maker based in London. He also made four other timepieces used on the voyage, one of which he sent on his own account. This is the only known surviving example by him from the voyage.
A new world record at auction for a letter by Charles Darwin was set at Bonhams New York yesterday (21 September) at the History of Science and Technology sale. The highly personal and unusually pointed statement on Darwin’s lack of belief in the Bible and in Jesus Christ as the son of God was sold for $197,000, (£127,000) having been estimated at $70,000-90,000 (£45,000-60,000). 
meridianae 