Manuscript of Coubertin’s vision for modern Olympics to be auctioned
Pierre de Coubertin’s enlightened vision for the modern Olympic Games will be going under the hammer at Sotheby’s in New York in December, Agence-France Presse has reported.
Quoting the respected auction house, AFP said that the original manuscript was written in 1892 for a speech in which the French aristocrat and father of the modern Olympics outlines the “Games' spirit of excellence, promotion of fair play and ‘personal as well as societal benefits.’”
“The 14-page manuscript is the only known copy of the manifesto in existence,” Sotheby's said in a statement.
An advocate of athletics, Coubertin founded the International Olympic Committee two years after giving the speech. The first modern Olympics were held in Athens in 1896.
“The manifesto boldly proclaims a wholly modern and progressive vision of humanity,” Richard Austin, head of Sotheby's Books and Manuscripts Department, was quoted by AFP as saying.
It is “one that continues to resonate today in its concept of unity,” he added.
The document, which will go on sale on October 18 after being shown in its first-ever public display on Tuesday and Wednesday, is estimated to fetch between $700,000 to $1 million, AFP reported.
