Manuscript of book that coined the term ‘metaverse’ to be auctioned by Sotheby’s

The manuscript of the cult classic novel “Snow Crash,” the book known for coining the term metaverse, is going up for auction online.

The never-before-seen manuscript is expected to fetch between $40,000 and $60,000, Sotheby’s said on Thursday.

“Half of my life ago, with my head full of computer graphics lore and visions of a satirical cyberpunk future, I sat down to write Snow Crash,” the author, Neal Stephenson, said in a press release from Sotheby’s. “Last year, at the 30th anniversary of the book’s publication, I pulled the old manuscript out of storage and looked at it for the first time since 1991.”

The sale will also include the typesetting manuscript of “Snow Crash,” as well as 35 mm slides used to pitch the project — which was originally conceived as a graphic novel — and a hand-forged tachi sword inspired by the weapon wielded by the novel’s protagonist.

“Taking place in a neoliberal society run by corporations and ravaged by hyperinflation, the dystopic novel provides a prophetic look at the future, foreshadowing the vast possibilities of cyberspace; from cryptocurrency and open-source intelligence to corporate espionage and control,” Sotheby’s said.

Alongside the auction, Sotheby’s is selling an NFT collection (Infocalpyse) with images related to the graphic novel project that preceded Snow Crash, “Dioxin Posse.”

Bidding opens Monday at 2 p.m. ET.

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