u/Micvss

Hey everyone,

I'm looking for some advice from anyone with experience authenticating rare historical signatures, especially if you know of someone in the Houston, TX area.

I have a copy of 22 Cells in Nuremberg signed by Dr. Douglas M. Kelley. Because of how rare the signature appears to be, I'm hesitant to ship the book to PSA or Beckett. I'm not even sure whether they would be able to authenticate something this uncommon.

I met with JSA at one of their events, but they weren't able to issue either a Letter of Authenticity or a Letter of Opinion because they rely on exemplars in their database, and they don't have enough known examples of Dr. Kelley's signature to compare against.

I've spent quite a bit of time researching his handwriting and have attached several examples that I've found. The problem is that I still don't feel like I have enough documented signatures from the 1940s–1950s to confidently establish provenance.

So far I've:

• Met with JSA.
• Contacted the Holocaust museum in Maryland, but they don't provide scans of handwritten archival material. I'd need to visit in person, which I'm willing to do (likely in mid-August).
• Contacted UC Santa Cruz, which also requires an in-person appointment to view handwritten documents.
• Attempted to contact Mr. Douglas M. Kelley Jr., but unfortunately I haven't received a response.

If anyone knows of:

• an authenticator who specializes in rare historical signatures,
• archives or collections that may contain Dr. Kelley's handwritten letters or signed documents,
• or any other avenues I should pursue,

I would be extremely grateful.

My goal isn't to get a quick opinion—it's to document this signature as thoroughly as possible using authentic examples from the 1940s and 1950s. Any advice or direction would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!