The Living Computers Museum in Seattle is closing down, and it'll auction off 150 pieces of history for charity

The Living Computers Museum was a testament to the computers of yore, set up by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. It gave people a chance to interact with the hardware that forged a path for the hardware we use today, but unfortunately, it shut its doors around the time of the pandemic after Paul Allen passed away. Now, the museum is holding an auction of 150 iconic items, with all proceeds going to charity.

The Living Computers Museum shuts its doors with three big auctions for charity

As reported by Geekwire, the museum is splitting its sales into three separate auctions. Each one comes with its own theme and contains items that helped shape computing today. The first auction is titled "Firsts: The History of Computing," an online sale that closes on September 12th:

This auction pays homage to Allen’s role shaping the modern computing landscape. A highlight of the sale is a computer which Allen helped restore and on which he worked, a DEC PDP-10: KI-10. Built in 1971, it’s the first computer that both Allen and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates ever used prior to founding Microsoft. It’s estimated to fetch $30,000 to $50,000.

The second auction is titled "Pushing Boundaries: Ingenuity," which will go live on September 10th. The star item for this auction is a letter from Albert Einstein to President Roosevelt, believed to be the starting spark for the Manhattan Project. It is expected to sell for $4-6 million.

The third is called "Over the Horizon: Art of the Future" which focuses on interstellar travel and closes September 12th. The main headliner for this auction is Chelsey Bonestell’s painting “Saturn as Seen from Titan,” which is expected to fetch $30,000-50,000.

If you'd like to know more, check out the official Christie's page for the auctions and sign up for notifications. Who knows - you may get to buy a piece of iconic computing history.

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