Amelia Earhart's
Palm Print

Nellie Simmons Meier (1862-1944)
[Amelia Earhart's palm print], 1933
Manuscript Division
Gift, 1938 (136E.8)

As a practitioner of palmistry, Nellie Simmons Meier believed that human character and destiny were revealed by the features of the hand. Meier had a special interest in the hands of famous people, and their prints and character analyses formed the basis of her 1937 bestseller, Lions' Paws. She prepared Earhart's print in 1933, four years before the famed aviator disappeared over the Pacific in her effort to fly around the world. According to Meier, Earhart's large palm revealed a love of physical activity and a strong will.