English astronomer (1890-1960) who became renowned as an authority on positional astronomy and served as Astronomer Royal for 23 years; he infamously expressed skepticism about the viability of manned spaceflight. Large archive of correspondence between Harold Spencer Jones and Cambridge astronomer Arthur Beer, comprising 20 letters by Spencer Jones (18 TLSs and two ALSs), plus many pages of Beer’s retained carbon copies and drafts, as well as unsigned cards, invitations, and other ephemera, dating from 1928 to 1951. In his letters, Jones offers congratulations to Beer, mentions fellow astronomers (Danjon, von Socher, Goethe, Brunt, and others), refers to open positions, solicits recommendations, speaks of Lockyer’s prismatic cameras, and discusses astronomical publications. Many of the pages are bound together with string. In overall very good condition, with scattered dampstaining, soiling, and edge tears throughout.
