Charles Darwin autograph in letter collection
A collection of correspondence, including an autograph letter from Charles Darwin, sent to a prominent Scottish Liberal MP is set to go under the hammer at Anderson & Garland in Newcastle on July 10, as part of the saleroom’s Collector’s Auction.
The Darwin letter is one of the sale’s highlights, written on headed paper from the celebrated Victorian naturalist’s home at Down House in Kent and dated 15th April. In the letter, Darwin thanks the recipient, identified as ‘Grove’, for assisting in the legal placement of his son, George Howard Darwin, at Lincoln’s Inn. The letter offers a rare and personal glimpse into the Darwin family’s private affairs and reflects the naturalist’s enduring influence even beyond the scientific world.
The rare album once belonged to Robert W. Campbell, a Liberal MP in Scotland and a figure deeply embedded in the political and cultural circles of his time. Campbell’s wide-ranging correspondence collection spans notable figures from the 19th and early 20th centuries, including William Ewart Gladstone, Winston S. Churchill, Henry Campbell-Bannerman, Arthur James Balfour, David Lloyd George, and many others.
The autograph album also features letters, postcards, and signatures from an extraordinary list of politicians, artists, military figures and nobility, including Helen and Stephen Gladstone, Wyke Bayliss, Sir Francis Carruthers Gould, John Morley, the Marquess of Lorne, the Earl of Rosebery, and George Nathaniel Curzon.
Fred Wyrley-Birch, Director and Auctioneer at Anderson & Garland, commented: “This is one of the most extraordinary autograph albums we’ve had the privilege to handle. The breadth of historic figures featured is remarkable, but the inclusion of a letter from Charles Darwin; especially one so personal, is something truly special. It’s a tangible piece of history that connects us directly with some of the most important minds and political leaders of the 19th century.”
The album is offered with an estimate of £1,000-2,000.