November 2012 Auction Ends Thursday, November 15th, 5pm Pacific
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 11/15/2012
Maurice Wilkins autograph manuscript signed, discussing a 7 March 1953 letter Wilkins had written to Francis Crick days before seeing Watson and Crick's seminal Double Helix in Cambridge. Manuscript also includes mention of Rosalind Franklin's historic departure from King's College as well as growing tensions between Wilkins and Crick. Included is a photocopy of that original 7 March 1953 letter on ''Kings College'' letterhead, with black and red ink annotations (not copied) presumably penned by Wilkins. Manuscript, written in black ink, is on two pages with ''MHF Wilkins'' signed at the upper right corner of each page. Reads in full: ''This was the last letter I wrote before seeing the Double Helix model in Cambridge. Polypeptide news may refer to Crick's work on coiled-coil diffraction from x helix; there having been some discrepancy between diffraction calculated from a straight x helix and that observed in proteins. I was much relieved that Rosalind's departure date was decided and she having moved to Birkbeck College* [noted ''X-ray lab'' in left margin] in London. We at Kings were thus free to set up a group to study DNA structure from a number of angles. Such a broad approach was certainly needed if firm evidence for a new model was to be obtained. After the [Watson and Crick] model had been built we carried on our broad approach in order to show the general idea of the [Double Helix] was correct and that, slightly altered in its proportions, the model gave diffraction like that observed by us. (That was slow, meticulous work which took until ~1960 when we felt reasonably certain and could exclude alternative ideas of the structure (with crystalline A DNA and crystalline B).) Francis later said that my letter arrived as they were finishing the refining and checking of the Double Helix. He said he was amused by the coincidence but I thought he was a little unkind to state publicly his amusement. (He was not an unkind person and we had been friends for years, 1948-53). After several days of careful checking, Francis and Jim asked John Kendrew (who was a very understanding mediator between our two labs) to ring me and invite me to come to Cambridge to see the famous model. Apart from colleagues at Cambridge, I think I was the first to see the model. The reference to '3 dimensional data' refers to numerical data from X-ray diffraction obtained by Rosalind which she had claimed in July 52 ruled out helices in the A DNA. I was very relieved to have just heard that Rosalind was moving to Birkbeck in the next week or so. Very good X-ray lab at Birkbeck which gave us much help, e.g. Furley's excellent work on configuration of nucleotides and possible arrangement of DNA chain in a helix with base-stacking. Those two aspects were very important. At the time of the letter I am not sure if I had the Franklin Gosling data (3 dimensional) for the A structure but I soon found that the lack of sharpness of the pattern made it impossible to be certain the A structure was not helical. I had always respected Rosalind as a scientist who could be respected and to be relied on in such matters. About this time we were fortunate to obtain new DNA of Signer quality and to improve X-ray cameras and get sharper patterns of crystalline DNA. This improved data gave us reason to suppose that both A + B DNA were helical and clearly one type of helix could easily change into another with humidity change (A <--> B shown by Rosalind). The whole non-helix idea was most unfortunate and prevented the advance of our work at Kings [College]. On the other hand Francis and Jim were exceptionally able and, as Francis commented, had a very good working relationship of great frankness and ability to criticize each others ideas.'' Manuscript measures 8.25'' x 11.5'' with staple holes and a minor fold at top left of each page. Near fine condition.
Maurice Wilkins Autograph Manuscript Signed -- Includes Observations on Events Preceding DNA Discovery -- ''...I was much relieved that Rosalind's departure date was decided...We at Kings were thus...
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