Einstein’s Travels

Abstract

This massive volume of nearly a thousand pages contains a rich array of assorted documentary evidence, most of which appears here for the first time. Still, the editors had to make a number of difficult choices to whittle the book down to its present size. They chose to publish 415 letters out of a total of 980; the remainder are chronicled in the calendar of abstracts, which appears along with a separate chronology of events. This division of the calendar is employed for the first time in this thirteenth volume. A far more significant innovation, however, concerns the decision to merge writings and correspondence in a single volume. By the early 1920s, the relative dearth of the former compared with the latter would have made this division difficult to maintain. Moreover, some of the writings in the present volume appear in a clearer light when surrounded by informal exchanges that pertain to them. Finally, the abundance of source material from these years made such a shift in course sooner or later necessary; this new editorial policy is duly noted by way of a brief synopsis of the history of the edition (lxxix). The documents presented here concern a period in Einstein’s life marked by dramatic political events, some of which affected him directly. Highlights include his dramatic performance at the College de France in the spring of 1922, his trip to Japan later that year, culminating with his personal remarks in Kyoto concerning his struggle to create the theory of relativity and a two-week sojourn in Palestine. Another special feature, particularly for those with an interest in biographical details, is Einstein’s Travel Diary (Doc. 379), which gives glimpses of his impressions over the course of his journeys from 6 October 1922 to 12 March 1923. These sketchy notes have been meticulously researched by the editors, who help fill in the blanks with 270 endnotes, many of which are lengthy. During this time,