When Albert Einstein died in 1955, his body became the subject of an unusual heist. During the autopsy at Princeton Hospital, pathologist Thomas Harvey removed the physicist’s brain without permission, hoping to study the secrets of genius. But Harvey didn’t stop there—he also took Einstein’s eyes. While the brain’s journey became a well-documented oddity, the fate of Einstein’s eyes remains shrouded in rumor, including claims they’re stored in a safety deposit box.
Harvey, driven by scientific curiosity (or perhaps morbid fascination), preserved Einstein’s brain in formaldehyde and kept it for decades, slicing it into 240 pieces for study. The eyes, however, were gifted to Einstein’s eye doctor, Henry Abrams. Abrams, an ophthalmologist in New Jersey, reportedly kept them in a jar, though their current location is unknown. Some speculate they’re hidden in a bank vault, while others believe they were lost or destroyed.
The macabre tale highlights the ethical gray areas of posthumous scientific inquiry. Einstein’s family never consented to the removal of his organs, and Harvey lost his job over the brain incident. Yet, the eyes slipped under the radar, becoming a footnote in the saga. Abrams’ descendants have remained silent, adding to the mystery.
Why steal eyes? For Abrams, it might have been a morbid souvenir or a misguided attempt to study Einstein’s vision. The physicist’s eyes were ordinary, but their symbolic value—windows to the mind that reshaped physics—made them irresistible. Today, their disappearance fuels conspiracy theories, from secret research projects to black-market collectibles.
Einstein’s brain, at least, found a measure of redemption. After decades in Harvey’s basement, sections were donated to researchers, though no “genius gene” was ever found. The eyes, however, remain a ghost story in scientific circles—a reminder that even in death, fame offers no protection from curiosity’s excesses.
So, next time you visit a bank vault, remember: somewhere, Einstein’s eyes might be staring back from the dark. And if you ever doubt the strangeness of history, consider this: one of humanity’s greatest minds was reduced to a jar of pickled organs. Genius, it seems, can’t escape becoming a relic—or a punchline. Just don’t ask the safety deposit box manager for details. Some secrets are best left in the dark.
