These Photos Of History Will Change How You View The World

A Messy Man With Magnificent Thoughts

When TIME photojournalist Ralph Morse got word of Einstein’s passing in 1955, he was the only photographer there to get pictures of Einstein’s desk just as he had left it after bribing the building superintendent. He was also the only photographer present at Einstein’s cremation after his tenacity had led him to be at the right place at the right time. But by the time Morse returned to New York, he was informed that TIME would not even publish the photos or the story due to a request from Einstein’s son to protect the family’s privacy. Morse forgot about these photos after that, but TIME recently published them in 2014.