Little do passersby know that inside Landau's store on Nassau St. — beyond the sales rack of scarves and sweaters and the model ram — is the nation's only museum dedicated to Albert Einstein. And it's only 120 sq. ft. big.
The collection of Einstein memorabilia in the back corner of the store includes pictures, letters, stamps, newspaper articles and even a seat cushion.
A 1951 letter addressed to Einstein from a young girl reads: "Dear Mr. Einstein, I am a little girl of six. I saw your picture in the paper. I think you ought to have your hair cut, so you can look better. Cordially yours, Ann G. Kocin."
Only about 60 items are presently in the collection, but several articles have been loaned to traveling exhibits and other places such as Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
Einstein is one of the world's most celebrated scientists and is best known for his theory of relativity. Despite his impact on the world, few people know more of him than his theories.
"This [museum] is the only permanent display of anything of his in the country," Henry Landau, co-owner of Landau's, said.
The idea for an Einstein collection did not come up until about eight years ago, when the movie "I.Q." was being shot.
In order to share some Einstein items with the community, Landau gathered some family pictures of Einstein and put them on display in the store. His parents were close friends of Einstein's daughter and his secretary.
The collection was so popular during the filming of the movie that they often had to clean the windows of fingerprints and smudges twice a day, Landau said.
After the filming, the exhibit was then moved to the Princeton Historical Society building. But the Einstein collection was displaced due to space constraints.
Three years ago, Landau's reclaimed the exhibit. "This is an inappropriate place for it, but [there is] no other place for it," Landau said.
Recently, the Historical Society purchased Updike Farm on Quaker Road and is planning to move their executive offices there.
Landau hopes the additional space will be enough to house the Einstein museum.
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