Stephen Hawking Signed Book Autograph Signature Thumb Print Stamp 1st Edition UK

Description

I am selling this
entire prestigious Stephen W. Hawking collection on behalf of a private collector.
Listed are two books, one of which has an incredibly rare Stephen W. Hawking signature and the other book holding Stephen W. Hawking's rare thumb print. The last item is a personal University of Cambridge letter from Stephen W. Hawking's written on behalf of his assistant. The letter also comes with a photograph of Professor Hawking and his signature stamped on the back of the photo.
The entire collection displayed here is as rare as it gets with obtaining anything remotely close to a signature of Stephen W. Hawking. Due to Professor Hawking's condition, he didn't sign many items and throughout the years his signature has changed immensely, with each signature being very different from the other which is why you won't see many signatures alike. Stephen then went to using his thumb print as an alternative which was only handed out to close relatives/assistants.
Stephen W. Hawking would also receive thousands of letters in which he would reply back with a picture of himself with his name "stamped" in the back as well as a letter from his assistant.
All the information below was provided with a lot of detail. It is encouraged, as for anything online, to conduct your own rigorous research and ask questions.
*Please Note, this auction is for two books, a letter from Stephen W. Hawking's
University of Cambridge
office and a picture of him with a stamped signature in the back.
1). "A Brief History of Time 1st Edition Book" signed by Stephen W. Hawking:
This book was originally purchased from a collector who acquired it from the estate library of the Lewis Stetson Allen family. Lewis Stetson was the great grandson of John Batterson Stetson, creator of the iconic Stetson hat. This book was delivered personally to Mr. Lewis Stetson Allen from Stephen Hawking's personal assistant. Lewis Allen Stetson was a renowned banker, businessman, and philanthropist who was well-connected, and active around the world. One of Lewis Stetson's sons were at the estate sale who sold the book to the original collector. Due to the passing of
Mr. Lewis Stetson Allen, there's no way to authenticate the signature. Given how Stephen Hawking's signature changed drastically throughout the 1st Edition publication of A Brief History of Time, it would be hard for anyone to try and authenticate this as there are no S.H signature experts.
This is the 13th printing of the First Edition of his classic "A Brief History of Time".
2). "The Universe in a Nutshell" Authentic thumb print from Stephen W. Hawking. Includes Provenance:
This book was
a family heirloom, and
acquired from a couple who were well connected with Stephen Hawking through their Aunt. The couples Aunt was employed by Professor Hawking as one of his head carers and worked with him in his home (original letter of provenance will come with this book revealing the full name). The couples Aunt had two of these books thumb printed in Professor Hawking's home for her nephews, as witnessed by Karen Sime, Professor Hawking's personal assistant at the time. A thumb print of Stephen Hawking was incredibly rare to obtain as he didn't do it for just anyone. What makes this thumb print unique is that it was done at Stephen Hawking's home, not at an event, and it's not a dedicated 'signing'. The personal photo of the couples Aunt with Stephen Hawking will be included.
3). "University of Cambridge" Letter and Photograph Signed Stamped from Stephen W. Hawking:
This letter is from the personal office of Professor Stephen W. Hawking at the University of Cambridge. Taken from hawking.org.uk, Stephen was the
Director of Research at the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics (DAMTP) and Founder of the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology (CTC) at the University of  Cambridge. For over thirty years he has lead the General Relativity group in DAMTP and he has been Principal Investigator of the COSMOS National Cosmology Supercomputer since 1997. Stephen is also the Emeritus Lucasian Professor for Cambridge, a prestigious title that boasts Isaac Newton, Paul Dirac and Charles Babbage amongst its previous holders.
During his time at Cambridge Professor Hawking has written a large number of publications. While at the University of Cambridge, Professor Hawking would receive thousands of letters. Because Professor Hawking wasn't able to reply personally, he would ask his assistant (Anthea Bain) to send letters on behalf of him. It's uncertain if every letter was replied with a photograph with Stephen W. Hawking's stamped signature, but this letter in the auction was.
Questions:
Any further questions will require a few days for receipt as I would need to call the owner and his son to get more information. All items are used and sold as-is. All sales are final and no returns accepted.
Shipping:
Shipping will be free for North America and Europe bidders. No shipping outside of North America/Europe. Only exceptions will be made on an individual basis after an exchange of messages through the eBay system. The Stephen W. Hawking collection will only be shipped via EMS with tracking and insurance. Paypal address must be confirmed 100%.