Gandhi’s handwritten reflections fetch $1.7M at auction
A collection of 688 handwritten reflections by Mahatma Gandhi has sold for $1.7 million at auction, Qazinform News Agency reports.
The manuscripts were part of Anand T. Hingorani’s collection and were auctioned by Saffronart on August 18-19. The winning bid was 162 million Indian rupees ($1.705 million), including the buyer’s premium.
The collection comprises reflections Gandhi wrote in Hindi for Hingorani between November 20, 1944, and October 10, 1946. Many of the entries are dated and also record the place where they were written.
The first 519 reflections were written on individual album leaves supplied by Hingorani. After the available album leaves were exhausted, Gandhi continued the series in a notebook, writing reflections 520 to 688 between April 25 and October 10, 1946.
The writings cover themes including truth, nonviolence, faith, prayer, service, labour, duty, fearlessness, religious equality, self-discipline and the search for God. The series began as an effort to console Hingorani following the death of his wife, Vidya.
The manuscripts were later transcribed in Hindi, translated into English and compiled by Hingorani for publication as A Thought for the Day, with facsimile reproductions of Gandhi’s handwriting.
The collection had been estimated at 150 million to 250 million rupees ($1.58 million-$2.63 million), putting the winning bid within the estimated range.
The sale also set a world record for an Indian historical document sold at auction, according to reports.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that Diego Maradona’s most famous ball, the ‘Hand of God,’ used to score his infamous goal against England in the 1986 World Cup, was expected to fetch up to $10 million at a U.S. auction this month.
