Lot 402

Exceptionally Scarce Offprint Announcing Crick & Watson's Double-Helix Model Signed by Crick, et al.

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Exceptionally Scarce Offprint Announcing Crick & Watson's Double-Helix Model Signed by Crick, et al.

Estimate: $25,000 - $30,000

Current Bid: $8,500

(1 Bid)

June 17, 2026 10:00 AM EDT
Live Auction
Wilton, CT, US

Description:

Francis Crick
n.p., ca. 1953
Exceptionally Scarce Offprint Announcing Crick & Watson's Double-Helix Model Signed by Crick, et al.
Signed Pamphlet/Booklet

Francis Crick signed offprint, "Molecular Structure of Nucleic Acids", with additional signatures. From "Nature, Vol. 171, p. 737, April 25, 1953." [London]: Fisher, Knight & Co., Ltd., [1953]. 14 pp, 8vo. Made up of 6 conjugate leaves and one half-leaf, the single leaf tipped onto the preceding leaf as issued. With four illustrations, including the double helix. Self-wrappers, stapled as issued. Comprising of three papers: "A Structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid" by J. D. Watson and F. H. C. Crick; "Molecular Structure of Deoxypentose Nucleic Acids" by M. H. F. Wilkins, A. R. Stokes, and H. R. Wilson; and "Molecular Configuration in Sodium Thymonucleate" by Rosalind E. Franklin and R. G. Gosling. With signatures: "M H F Wilkins" and "Francis Crick," signing next to the title of the first paper; "H. R. Wilson," signing next to his name following the second paper; and "R. G. Gosling," signing next to his name at the closing of the third paper. Gently toned, with light wrinkling at lower right.

Offered here is the first issue of the very first offprint edition. Although the exact number printed is unknown, it is presumed to be small. In an article for the "Gazette of the Grolier Club" (Number 46, 1994), Dr. Haskell F. Norman, opines that quantities may be limited to as few as 25 to 50, "which authors often sent to friends, frequently with their inscriptions." Auction records seem to support this theory as copies of "Molecular Structure of Nucleic Acids" consistently bring strong prices. A copy signed by four of the authors sold for $62,500 in 2012. An unsigned copy belonging to Dr. Leonard Hamilton of Sloan-Kettering Institute sold for $30,240 in 2024.

Although Watson and Crick had previously discussed their model informally within scientific circles, their paper in the April 1953 issue of Nature was the first public announcement of their double-helix model. Watson, Crick, and Wilkins shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1962 for the discoveries first published in these papers.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $99 $10
$100 $299 $20
$300 $499 $25
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $2,999 $200
$3,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 + $5,000