A rare signed copy of the iconic photograph of German physicist Albert Einstein playfully sticking his tongue out is expected to fetch USD 100,000 at an auction in the US.
The picture which was clicked on the occasion of the Nobel Prize winner's 72nd birthday on March 14, 1951 by Arthur Sasse, a photographer whose employers were at first hesitant about publishing the iconoclastic image of Einstein. When they were published, Einstein was so amused by it that he ordered several prints to give out to close friends, according to Nate D Sanders Auctions.
The image, unlike most prints is not cropped to show only Einstein. He is seen seated between Frank Aydelotte, head of the Institute of Advanced Study in Princeton, US, and Aydelotte's wife, after celebrating his birthday at the Princeton Club. The photo is signed along the left margin "A. Einstein .51", indicating he signed the image shortly after it was taken. It measures 7' x 10' and is in good condition. The auction bidding will end on July 27.