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Enigma machine among featured highlights of Fine Autographs and Artifacts up for auction
Enigma Machine. Estimate: $250,000+.
BOSTON, MASS
.-RR Auction s May Fine Autographs and Artifacts Auction, boasting nearly 900 items across numerous genres, is highlighted by a rare, functional Enigma machine.
The Enigma I electromechanical cipher machine was made for the German military in Berlin in 1935, during the buildup of German forces in violation of the Treaty of Versailles prior to World War II.
First patented in 1918 by Arthur Scherbius, the Enigma machine was developed for use in the transmission of confidential information: in addition to its obvious military and diplomatic applications, the machine found commercial use for the encryption of sensitive financial data. The German military adopted the Enigma as its primary cipher in 1926, after learning that the British had intercepted and interpreted coded German naval messages during World War I. Amidst the subsequent buildu