Biography
Matthew Hoffarth has been an Associate Specialist in Sotheby’s department of Science & Popular Culture since April 2022. Matthew received his Ph.D. in History and Sociology of Science from the University of Pennsylvania (2018) and worked in several museums and cultural institutions before joining Sotheby’s. He has been a key contributor to numerous high-profile sales at Sotheby’s, including:
• The record-breaking Buzz Aldrin: American Icon sale – the most valuable Space Exploration auction to date – which totaled $8.2 million on just 68 lots, and which reset the world record for any space-flown artifact at $2.8 million for Aldrin’s Inflight Coverall Jacket which he wore to the Moon and back
• The first Gorgosaurus dinosaur fossil ever to come to auction, selling for $6.1 million, as well as the record-setting sale of Maximus the T. rex skull for $6.1 million
• The visionary Snow Crash sale – an offering of physical and digital items connected to the revolutionary 1992 science fiction novel of the same name – which realized $1.5 million on just 6 lots, the majority of which were consigned by author Neal Stephenson
• The sale of numerous scientific medals and awards, including Arthur Holly Compton’s 1927 Nobel Prize in Physics ($277,200) and Adolf von Baeyer’s 1905 Nobel Prize in Chemistry ($203,200)
Dr. Hoffarth is a member of the History of Science Society (HSS), the Society for the History of Technology (SHOT), and Cheiron: The International Society for the History of Behavioral & Social Sciences.
He has successfully completed the coursework and examination in the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP).
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