Novelties

ZOLA, Émile (1840-1902)

Autograph letter signed « Emile Zola » [to Albert Lacroix]
Paris, 13 Sept[ember] 1867, 2 pp. in-8°

« I’m counting on a horror success »

SULLY PRUDHOMME (1839-1907)

A set of fifteen autograph letters (all signed) to Georges Lafenestre
Spanning from 1900 to 1905, 18 p. 1/2 in various formats, in-12° et in-8°

« Zola’s death threatens to disturb the superficial peace of the armistice »

NAPOLÉON III (1808-1873)

Autograph letter signed « N » to Empress Eugénie
[Camden Place, Chislehurst], 2nd August [1872], 1 p. 1/2 in-8°

« Your absence leaves a great void and although we live under the same roof we see little of each other, it is always very sweet to feel close to those we love »

MONTIJO (de), impératrice Eugénie (1826-1920)

Autograph letter signed « Eugénie » to an unknown recipient
[Camden Place, Chislehurst], 4 February [18]73, 1 p. 1/2 in-8°

« Sensitive to your sympathy and the regrets you express to me for the one we mourn »

BAUDELAIRE, Charles (1821-1867)

[Second notice on] Pierre Dupont – Corrected proof
[Paris] 6th June 1861 [stamped], 11 p. in-8vo bradel

“The public was so tired of Victor Hugo’s tireless faculties, his indestructible beauties”

[BAUDELAIRE] CARJAT, Étienne (1828-1906)

Period albumen print
[Paris, between late 1861 and early 1862]. Wet stamp « Et. Carjat »

Étienne Carjat’s masterpiece, the only known period print

PROUST, Marcel (1871-1922)

Autograph letter signed « Marcel Proust » to Marie Scheikévitch
[Paris], 9th January 1915, 4 p. in-8° with envelope

« And now I know. I know that you, the being of all whom I would like to blossom in the noblest joy, that this being is heartbroken »

ARTAUD, Antonin (1896-1948)

Autograph letter signed « Antonin Artaud » to Adrienne Monnier
Psychiatric Hospital of Ville-Evrard, 4th March 1939, 2 p. in-4° with enveloppe

« This story of look-alikes is as old as centuries, and all the great characters throughout history have found real doubles »

DERAIN, André (1880-1954)

Autograph letter signed « A Derain » to a gentleman
Lisieux, 31st May 1915, 1 p. in-4°

« I have been very abandoned from painting circles, I even wonder if I will ever do some again »

BRAQUE, Georges (1882-1963)

Autograph letter signed « G Braque » to a « dear friend »
Paris, 4th June 1943, 2 pp. in-8°

« Nature does not give us the taste for perfection, we can not conceive it better or worse »

MALIBRAN, Maria (1808-1836)

Autograph letter signed « Maria » to Louis Viardot
[Brussels, 18th March 1832], 1 p. 1/4 in-4°

« Next Saturday Mrs. Malibran and Mr. de Bériot will be heard in a Concert given by them at the Grand Théâtre »

BERNARD, Claude (1813-1878)

Autograph letter signed « Claude Bernard » to Mr Worms
N.p.n.d, 1 p. 1/2 in-12 on laid paper with his embossed initials

« If you can come one of these mornings… bring me your experimental information on cholera »

CLAUDEL, Paul (1868-1955)

Autograph letter signed « P. Cl. » [to Joseph Desclausais]
W[ashington], 15th March 1933, 3 p. 1/4 large in-8°

« I thought you were theological, and I see that you know less than a 12-year-old »

VERLAINE, Paul (1844-1896)

Autograph letter signed « P. Verlaine » to Armand Gouzien
Paris-Montmartre, [September-October 1871], 2 p. in-8°

« My wife, who is pregnant, was horribly unwell last night and I was on my feet and on my teeth »

FLAUBERT, Achille Cléophas (1784-1846)

Autograph letter signed « Flaubert » to Charles Vacquerie
Rouen le 12 X^bre [December] 1838, 1 p. 1/2 in-4° in black ink

« I think at this moment that a bloodletting of the arms is useful to you »

[CHATEAUBRIAND] STAËL (de), Germaine (1766-1817)

Letter signed « Necker de Staël » to Claire de Duras
[Paris] Sunday 11th May [1817], 3 pp. in-8°

« I have, thank God, never harmed anyone with whom I have had dealings »

[PRINCE IMPERIAL] BASSANO, Napoléon Maret, duc de (1803-1898)

Letter signed « Duc de Bassano » to the Comte de la Chapelle, Alfred de Morton
[Camden Place, Chislehurst] July 1879, 1 p. in-8° on mourning paper

« I have been instructed by Her Majesty the Empress to convey to you her many thanks for the sentiments you have expressed to her in her immense misfortune »

[BAUDELAIRE] VERLAINE, Paul (1844-1896)

Autograph letter signed « Paul Verlaine » to Léon Deschamps
Paris, 19th October 1890, 1 p. in-8

« I had accompanied, very young and all obscure as I was, the coffin of Baudelaire »

GAINSBOURG, Serge (1928-1991)

Autograph manuscript
N.p.n.d [c. 1980s], 1/2 p. in-4°

« Jus de truffe… »

SEMPÉ, Jean-Jacques (1932-2022)

Autograph letter signed « Sempé » to Gérard Leman
Paris, 15th January [19]68, 1 p. in-4° with autograph envelope

« I work so slowly… »

CONDORCET (de), Sophie de Grouchy, marquise (1763-1822)

Autograph letter to Jacques Pierre Brissot de Warville
N.p.n.d [Paris, soon after the 24nd of March 1792], 1 p. 1/2 small in-4°

« Here are 2 little things that seem to me likely to destroy the effect of the King’s letter… »

BEAUMARCHAIS (de), Pierre-Augustin Caron (1732-1799)

Autograph letter signed « Beaumarchais » to comedian Préville
Paris, 31st March 1784, 2 pp. on bi-folio in-8°

« My play isn’t a big thing ; but seeing it in the theater is the result of four years of fighting »

MONTIJO (de), Impératrice Eugénie (1826-1920)

Autograph letter signed « Eugénie » to Marie-Thérèse Bartholoni
Farnborough Hill, Hants, 4th November 1908, 4 p. in-8°

« The 15th of November has long ceased to be a feast for me, and the ranks of those who once celebrated it are thinning every day, for death is mowing down all around us »

MONTIJO (de), Impératrice Eugénie (1826-1920)

Autograph letter signed « Eugénie » to Marie-Thérèse Bartholoni
Camden Place, Chislehurst, 10 10bre [October 1873], 4 p. in-8°, mourning paper

« When you want an unhealthy share of popularity, you don’t know how to absolve or condemn »

MASSENET, Jules (1842-1912)

Autograph letter signed « JM » to Constance de Gressy
Brussels, 24 Nov[ember] [18]81, 3 pp. in-8°

« I have never written a more solid work – not a lapse in the effects – it comes out the way I wanted – I am even stunned! »

STENDHAL, Henri Beyle, dit (1783-1842)

Autograph letter to his sister, Pauline Périer-Lagrange
N.p, « Sunday », [13rd May 1810], 3 p. 1/4 in-4°

« My days here are filled by a woman, whom I am not in love with, but whom I constantly think about »

DUMAS (père), Alexandre 1802-1870

Autograph manuscript signed « Al Dumas »
S.l [Naples], 18 9bre [November] 1862, 4 pp. in-folio

« To the letter that we have put before our readers’ eyes… »

ZOLA, Émile (1840-1902)

Autograph letter signed « Emile Zola » to Fernand Desmoulin
Médan, 8th August 1895, 2 pp. in-8°

« I ended up despising the weather, going out in the downpours, which means that I come back soaked, covered in mud »

CHAR, René (1907-1988)

Autograph letter signed « René Char » [to Marianne Oswald]
L’Isle-sur-Sorgue, 15th Oct[ober] [19]49, 1 p. in-4°

« I’m always ill, having no envy for my books done or to be done. Life is constantly oscillating between fire and dung. »

CLEMENCEAU, Georges (1841-1929)

Autograph carte-de-visite signed « GL » to Michel Alexandre Gaston Tournier
N.p.n.d, 1 p. in-24°

« Nature is… what it is »

[RIMBAUD] DELAHAYE, Ernest (1853-1930)

Autograph letter signed  “Ernest Delahaye” à Marcel Coulon
Maisons-Laffitte, 8th June 1929, 2 p. in-12, autograph envelope attached

“I will wait « gluttinously », as the man of A Season in Hell would say”

RODIN, Auguste (1840-1917)

Autograph name card signe « AR » to M. Drefuns
N.p.n.d [Paris, after 1880], 1 p. in-24°

Charming autograph name card signed by the master

SARTRE, Jean-Paul (1905-1980)

Autograph manuscript for Le Diable et le Bon Dieu
N.p.n.d [c. 1950], 2 p. in-4° in blue ink

« It’s a hard scream in there… »

SAGAN, Françoise (1935-2004)

Autograph letter signed « Françoise Sagan » to « Henri »
Paris, 167 blvd Malesherbes [c. 1950s], 3 pp. in-4°

« I’ll be happy to fail with you anyway »

COLETTE (1873-1954)

Autograph letter signed « Colette » to Jean Guillermet
[22nd March 1945], 1 p. 1/4 in-4° on blue paper

« I send my thoughts to both of you »

[SEDAN] NAPOLÉON III (1808-1873)

Autograph dispatch signed « Napoléon » to Charles Duperré
[Wilhlmeshoehe castle, 6-8 September 1870], 1/2 p. in-8°

« Where is the Empress »

PRINCE IMPÉRIAL, Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte (1856-1879)

Autograph letter signed « Louis Napoléon » to his friend Pierre de Bourgoing
Camden place, 23rd October 1870, 2 p. in-8° on bifolio

« England will never be worth France ! »

PRINCE IMPÉRIAL, Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte (1856-1879)

Autograph letter signed « Louis-Napoléon » to Charles de Morny
Paris, 10th March 1865, 2 pp. in-8°

« In the future I will show you as much friendship as the Emperor showed to your father »

[PRINCE IMPÉRIAL] Gösta FLORMAN (1831-1900)

Portrait of the Prince Impérial by Gösta Florman, period albumen print
[Stockholm, 1878], carte-de-visite format

Supere portrait of the Prince Impérial by Gösta Florman

BARBARA, Monique Serf, dite (1930-1997)

Autograph letter signed « Barbara » to her « dear Jean »
N.p.n.d, 1 p. in-8°

« I am silent, struggling in dark dramas »

BERGSON, Henri (1859-1941)

Autograph letter signed « H. Bergson » to Raphaël Cor
Paris, 22nd March 1935, 2 p. in-8°

« I find interesting the relationship you establish between immoralism and the sexual question… »

LE CORBUSIER, Charles-Edouard Jeanneret dit (1887-1965)

Typed letter signed « Le Corbusier » to Charles Hary
Paris, 18th April 1854, 2 p. in-4°

« I thus conceived and produced the “POÈME de l’ANGLE DROIT”. Five years were devoted to this work, in which I wished to include an order of thoughts.. »

CELINE, Louis-Ferdinand (1894-1961)

Autograph letter signed « LF Céline » to Charles Deshayes
Korsør, 1st September 1947, 5 p. in-folio, with enveloppe

« Bagatelles was never banned under Daladier. It was banned in the South Zone under Pétain! »

JACOB, Max (1876-1944)

Autograph letter signed « Max Jacob » to Raymond Trillat
[St Benoît-sur-Loire], 12th September [1942], 2 p. in-4°

« Here daily visits to such an extent that a report was made (denunciation) to the police… »

MIRÓ, Joan (1893-1983)

Autograph letter signed « Joan » to Maria [San Lazzaro]
Folgarolas 9, Barcelona, 23rd December 1955, 1 p. in-4°

« I was awfully busy preparing my next exhibition »

OFFENBACH, Jacques (1819-1880)

Autograph letter signed « Jacques Offenbach » to Hortense Schneider
S.l.n.d, « Sunday », 1 p. in-16°

« So tomorrow at 6 h 1/2 Café Riche »

MASSENET, Jules (1842-1912)

Autograph letter signed « J. Massenet » to Antonin Proust
Bruxelles, Tuesday 13th Xbre [December] 1881

« The first performance of Hérodiade is set for Monday, December 19 »

MASSENET, Jules (1842-1912)

Autograph letter signed « J Masse » to Constance de Gressy
Brussels, “Friday 5 pm” [25th November 1881], 3 p. in-8°

« I put so much care into the orchestration – I worked on it so much! »

MASSENET, Jules (1842-1912)

Autograph letter signed « J. Massenet » to a friend
Paris, 18th June [18]79, 1 p. in-8°

« I’m expected in London and I’ll be back in Paris next Friday 27th for the composition competition»

ZOLA, Émile (1840-1902)

Autograph letter signed « Emile Zola » to a colleague
Paris, 12th November [18]93, 1 p. 1/2 in-8°

“When I have finished a book and given it to the public, it no longer exists for me. All my passion collapses”

LOUŸS, Pierre (1870-1925)

Two autograph letters signed « Pierre » to Georges Louis
Chantilly, 29 mars 1883, 3 pp. in-8° sur papier de deuil

Rare set of two childhood letters to his half-brother Georges

BOURDELLE, Antoine (1861-1929)

Autograph letter signed « Bourdelle » to M. Thiebaut-Sissou
Paris, 9th March 1920, 1 p. in-8°

« I won’t be exhibiting at the show, or very little. I am at great work and that alone binds me »

DELACROIX, Eugène (1798-1863)

Autograph letter signed « Eug Delacroix » [to Louis Guillemardet]
N.p.n.d, « this 30th March » [1855 ?], 1 p. in-8°

« Would you be so kind as to reserve your Saturday night for me… »

VERLAINE, Paul (1844-1896)

Autograph post-card signed « Votre P. Verlaine » to Jules Rais
[Paris, 16, rue Saint-Victor], 15th March 1895, 1 p. in-8°

« I’m bedridden and can’t move from the bed »

COLETTE (1873-1954)

Autograph letter signed « Colette Willy » to Alfred Diard
N.p.n.d (between 1893 and 1906), 1 p. in-8°

« A box of Velvet Soap… »

SUARÈS, André (1868-1948)

Autograph manuscript signed « Suarès »
N.p.n.d, 1 p. in-16°

« Botticelli is an inventor of beauty who has no master »

COCTEAU, Jean (1889-1963)

Autograph letter signed (with his star) to Jean Marais
Perpignan, 1st July 1940, 2 pp. in-4°

« It’s as if everything is a dream and that we are going to wake up at the Place de la Madeleine… »

MAURIAC, François (1885-1970)

Autograph letter signed « M » to André Malraux
[Paris, 6th February 1928], 1 p. petit in-8°

« Grasset doesn’t like your novel, and Paulhan admires it very much »

[MANET] DAUDET, Léon (1867-1942)

Autograph manuscript signed « Léon Daudet »
N.p.n.d [Paris, June 1932], 4 pp. large in-4°

« Manet is the beauty of colour, the celebration of the decomposition of light through the prism »

BERGSON, Henri (1859-1941)

Autograph letter signed « H. Bergson » to Michel Georges-Michel
Saint-Cergue, 1st August 1926, 3 pp. in-8°

« There is an uninterrupted current of humour that flows through these pages and is not, it must be admitted, the characteristic of my work »

PÉTAIN, Philippe (1856-1951)

Autograph letter signed « Petain » [to Jean-Louis Forain ?]
N.p, 10th August 1918, 1 p. in-8° on his letterhead

« A few corpses descend the Marne along the water… »

PRÉVERT, Jacques (1900-1977)

Autograph letter signed « Jacques » to Claudy Carter
S.l.n.d [Paris, c. 1947], 4 pp. grand in-4°

« I didn’t want you to think I was forgetting you »

BOURDELLE, Antoine (1861-1929)

Autograph letter signed « Bourdelle » to a friend
Paris, 12th April 1920, 2 pp. in-8°

« My technique, learned and supplemented by Rodin, is even inscribed in portraiture »

BALZAC (de), Honoré (1799-1850)

Autograph letter signed « de Balzac » to Charles Motte
[Paris], 8 8bre [October 1831], 2 p. in-8°

« Let me add seriously that I offer you my book »

[RIVIÈRE] CLAUDEL, Paul (1868-1955)

Autograph manuscript signed « Paul Claudel »
Château de Lutaines, June 1925, 17 p. 1/2 in-4°

« Rivière is the best illustration of this Providence whose hand he never ceased to feel upon him »

GIONO, Jean (1895-1970)

Autograph postcard signed « Jean Giono » to Anna Robin
Manosque, [31st August 1941], 1 p. in-8°

« I owe a great deal of my happiness to you »

GUITRY, Sacha (1885-1957)

Autograph letter signed twice « Sacha Guitry » to a gentleman
N.p.n.d «3 in the morning », 1 p. in-4°

« 3 o’clock in the morning – really! »

[SATIE] JACOB, Max (1876-1944)

Autograph letter signed twice to the Salacrou couple
N.p.n.d [4th july 1925], 2 p. in-8°

« Oh! Satie! Nightmare! »

PROUST, Marcel (1871-1922)

Autograph letter signed « Marcel Proust » to Marie Scheikévitch
[Paris], 16th April 1918, 1 p. in-8°

« I will arrange to see you very soon »

MAO, Zedong (1893-1976)

First edition of the Little Red Book
[Beijing, May 1964], 250 p. in-16° (13,8 x 10 cm)

« Politics is was without blood, while war is politics with blood »

GAUGUIN, Paul (1848-1903)

Autograph letter signed « Paul Gauguin » to a collector
N.p.n.d [Paris, 1st or 2nd November 1893], 1 p. 1/2 in-8°

« The exhibition will be launched on the 9th »

[ZOLA] FLAUBERT, Gustave (1821-1880)

Two autograph letters signed « Gve Flaubert » to Émile Zola
[Croisset, 2th May and 3rd June 1874], 5 pp. in-8°

« Father Faujas is sinister and great – a true director! How well he manipulates the woman, how skillfully he seizes her, taking her by charity, then brutalizing her! »

HUGO, Victor (1802-1885)

Autograph manuscript
N.p.n.d [1841], 1 p. in-8°

« Love is wont not to lodge in the hand of stinginess »

MALLARMÉ, Stéphane (1842-1898)

Autograph card signed « PAPA » to his daughter Geneviève Mallarmé
[Valvins, 12th July 1891], 1 p. in-8°

« The little cookies… »

HUGO, François-Victor (1828-1873)

Autograph letter signed « François Victor Hugo » to a friend
N.p.n.d [c. 1865-1866] « 21st April », 1 p. in-4° on mourning paper

« We have a small floor available in the cottage we live in »

[NAPOLÉON III] DISDÉRI, Eugène (1819-1889)

Portrait of Napoléon III by Disdéri
N.p.n.d, c. 1868, cdv format

Famous and elegant full-length portrait of Emperor Napoleon III

[POUGY] GHIKA, George (1884-1945)

Autograph letter signed « Georges Ghika » to Liane de Pougy, princesse Ghika
N.p, 8th june 1923, 1 p. in-8°, blue ink on beige paper

« Encore… »

[POUGY] GHIKA, George (1884-1945)

Autograph letter signed « Georges Ghika » to Liane de Pougy, princesse Ghika
Le Clos-Marie, Roscoff, 2nd July 1924, 2 p. in-4°

« It seems that your pearly body, slightly amber from distant sailings... »

VOLTAIRE, François-Marie Arouet, dit (1694-1778)

Autograph letter signed « de Voltaire » to George-Conrad Walther
Château de Lunéville, 6th April 1748, 3 p. in-8°

« Forgive a man who is a friend of peace this warmth he puts into preserving it, and this fear he has of seeing his work destroyed »

LONDRES, Albert (1884-1932)

Autograph postcard signed « Albert » to his daughter Florise
Bruges [14 December (1922 ?)], 1 p. in-8°

« Will be in Paris tomorrow »

[NERVAL] VILMORIN, Louise de (1902-1969)

Autograph manuscript signed “Louise de Vilmorin” 
N.p, [Hôpital Américain, Neuilly-sur-Seine], 14th June 1952, 2 p. 1/2 in-4

“The sad and wonderful stories of Gérard de Nerval are the work of an explorer of sorrow”

[DUMAS] Ferdinand DUGUÉ (1816-1913)

Autograph manuscript signed « F Dugué »
N.p.n.d [1870], 2 p. in-8°

« D’Artagnan conquered death!… »

[WAGNER] GAUTIER (fils), Théophile (1836-1904)

Autograph letter signed « Théophile Gautier » to Louis Fourcaud
[Paris], 17th Jan[uary] 1886, 1 p. in-8°

« Saint-Saëns and Massenet will be nothing more than fading shadows »

RENARD, Jules (1864-1910)

Autograph-card letter signed « Jules Renard » [to Georges Moreau]
[Paris], 14th June 1895, 1 p. 1/2 in-12°

« The unpublished chapter of Poil de Carotte… »

CELINE, Louis-Ferdinand (1894-1961)

Autograph letter signed twice, « Des » and « Louis », to his wife Lucette
Københavns Fængsler’s prison, 22nd August 1946, 2 pp. in-4°

« Unfortunately, I no longer have enough years, months to live to puke all that I have swallowed in these months of resentment, humiliation and hatred »

GAUGUIN, Paul (1848-1903)

Autograph letter signed « Paul Gauguin » to Daniel de Monfreid
[Tahiti], November 1895, 3 p. 1/4 p. in-4°

« Every night frenzied girls invade my bed; yesterday I had three to function »

RAVEL, Maurice (1875-1937)

Autograph letter signed « Maurice Ravel » to Maurice Emmanuel
[Montfort-l’Amaury], « 14/10/[19]22 », 4 p. in-8°

« An upward progression of sound »

CELINE, Louis-Ferdinand (1894-1961)

Autograph letter signed « Louis Destouches (LF Céline) » to Léon Daudet
[Paris, May 1936], 8 pp. large in-4°

« I write in a kind of spoken prose, transposed »

CITROËN, André (1878-1935)

Autograph manuscript signed « André Citroën »
S.l, 3rd April 1926, 1/2 p. in-8°

« It is by intensifying production and subsequently exporting that the country will be revived » 

CHATEAUBRIAND (de), François-René (1768-1848)

Autograph letter to Laure de Cottens
Paris, 24th March 1835, 4 p. large in-8°

« I still want to go and die out of France »

HUGO, Victor (1802-1885)

Autograph manuscript (copeau)
N.p.n.d [Hauteville-House], 2 p. in-8°

« He comes, and we see the dawn through his pink fingers »

HUGO, Victor (1802-1885)

Autograph letter signed « V.H. » to pastor Nathanaël Martin-Dupont
Hauteville House, 3 7bre [September 1868], 1 p. in-12° on mourning paper

« The great soul in this great clarity sees that I am crying, and knows that I’m hoping »

GIACOMETTI, Alberto (1901-1966)

Autograph letter signed « Alberto Giacometti » to David Thompson
Paris, 2th August 1956, 3 p. in-8°

« Because of sculpture I am forced to neglect painting »

PROUST, Marcel (1871-1922)

Autograph letter signed « Marcel Proust » to Marie Scheikévitch
N.p, 17th April 1917, 4 pp. large in-8°

« I came back with nostalgia for Lost Time… »

PROUST, Marcel (1871-1922)

Autograph letter signed « Marcel Proust » to Marie Scheikévitch
Cabourg, [5th September 1912], 3 p. 1/2 in-8°

« Fortunately, I have no memory and I forget extremely quickly the people I liked »

[PROUST] BOYER, Paul (1861-1952)

Original photograph by Paul Boyer
Period albumin print (c. 1891). Carte-de-visite format

Very scarce original photograph of young Marcel Proust

ZOLA, Emile (1840-1902)

Autograph letter signed « Emile Zola » to the journal L’Avenir national
Paris, 12th June 1865, 2 p. 1/2  in-8, Librairie Hachette & Cie letterhead

« You have kindly promised me your support, and I commend myself to you »

[HUGO, Victor] Charles GALLOT (1838-1919)

Portrait of Victor Hugo, period albumen print on thick cardboard
[Paris, 12th April 1885], cabinet format

Rare original print of the last portrait of Victor Hugo alive, five weeks before his death

VERLAINE, Paul (1844-1896)

Autograph poem signed « Paul Verlaine »
London, 1873, 1 p. in-8°, on laid paper

« O le feu du ciel sur cette ville de la Bible ! »

SAND, George (1804-1876)

Autograph manuscript signed « G Sand » for her novel Consuelo [fragments]
[Nohant and Paris, between late 1842 and early 1843] 27 p. in-8°

« End of Consuelo »

CHATEAUBRIAND (de), François-René (1768-1848)

Autograph letter signed « Chateaubriand » to Laure de Cottens
Geneva, 12th July 1831, 3 p. in-8°

« It will only take me two hours to get to you »

LACLOS (de), Pierre Choderlos (1741-1803)

Autograph letter signed « P. Choderlos Laclos » to Condorcet
Paris, 16th June 1793, 2e [an 2] de la République, 1 p 1/4 in-4°

« The long habit of being slandered »

RENOIR, Pierre-Auguste (1841-1919)

Autograph letter signed “Renoir” to Paul Bérard
Naples, Saturday 26th [November 1881], 3 pages in-12

“I have tried it all, painting with gasoline, wax, siccative…”

DALÍ, Salvador (1904-198

Original drawings and autograph poem
N.p.n.d [c. 1935], 1 p. in-8° (16 x 20,5 cm)

« I empty my evil »

ÉLUARD, Paul (1895-1952)

Autograph poem, in honor of Gabriel Péri
N.p.n.d [after 1945], 1 p. in-folio (30,9 x 20,9 cm)

«  Péri est mort pour ce qui nous fait vivre / Tutoyons-le sa poitrine est trouée »

FLAUBERT, Gustave (1821-1880)

Autograph letter signed « Gve Flaubert » to Pauline Sandeau
Croisset près Rouen, Sunday [26th August 1860], 1 p. in-8°

« I want to see your pretty eyes, your pretty mouth & and I kiss both of your hands »

RIMBAUD, Arthur (1854-1891)

Autograph letter signed « Rimbaud » to his family
Aden, 10th September 1884, 4 pp. in-8° on laid paper

« And since every man is a slave in this miserable fatality »

POTOCKI, Jean (1761-1815)

Autograph letter signed « Jean Potocki » to Firmin Didot
Tulczyn, 1st December [1810], 1 1/4 p. in-4°

« I realize every day that it is difficult to see clearly in science when you are so far from the home of the enlightenment »

[POUGY] GHIKA, George (1884-1945)

Autograph letter signed « Georges Ghika » to Liane de Pougy, princess Ghika
N.p, 2nd July 1923, 1. in-4°

« I boast of a privilege »

[EINSTEIN] BERGSON, Henri (1859-1941)

Autograph letter signed « Henri Bergson » to Jean Becquerel
Paris, 24 Sept[ember] 1922, 16 pages in-8°

« From the point of view of the theory of Relativity, there is no longer absolute motion or absolute immobility »

MONTIJO (de), Impératrice Eugénie (1826-1920)

Autograph letter signed « Eugénie » to Marie-Thérèse Bartholoni
Camden Place, Chislehurst [January 1873], 8 p. in-8°, mourning paper

« The Emperor’s rapid death has, so to speak, awakened the public conscience. »

CHAR, René (1907-1988)

Autograph letter signed « René Char » to Marianne Oswald
[Paris] 7th May 1960, 1 p. 1/2 large in-4°

« It is not out of pride that I refuse to appear, to say, to speak »

ÉLUARD, Paul (1895-1952)

Autograph poem signed « Paul Eluard »
N.p.n.d, 2 p. in-folio on thin green paper

« The eyelid of the sun lowers on your face »

SOUTINE, Chaïm (1893-1943)

Autograph letter signed « Votre Soutine » to Émile Lejeune
Paris, 30th November [19]31, 2 p. in-4°

« It won’t be long before I get back to work »

[DELACROIX] SAND, George (1804-1876)

Autograph letter signed « G.S. » to Eugène Delacroix
[Paris] Postal mark [23rd December 1841], 1 p. 1/2 in-8°

« I saw your femmes d’Alger »

KAHLO, Frida (1907-1954)

Autograph statement signed « Frida Kahlo »
Mexico, 2nd August 1947, 1/2 p. in-4°, with autograph envelope

A few drawings for a friend…

CAILLEBOTTE, Gustave (1848-1894)

Autograph letter signed « G Caillebotte » to Claude Monet
N.p.n.d, Friday [Petit-Gennevilliers, after 1887 ?], 3 pp. in-8°

« I have covered a lot of canvases and wasted a lot of colour »

BOURDELLE, Antoine (1861-1929)

Autograph letter signed « Ant Bourdelle » [to André Fontainas]
Paris, November 1928 [in reality 25th December], 4 pp. in-4°

« The two Beethoven »

STEVENSON, Robert Louis (1850-1894)

Autograph letter signed « Robert Louis Stevenson » to Hubert Smith-Stainer
Edinburgh, [Pitlochry, 6th June 1881], 3 pp. in-8°

« Two or three nights under the stars… »

BLIXEN, Karen (1885-1962)

Autograph letter signed « Karen Blixen » to Negley Farson
Rungstedlund, Rungsted Kyst, 20.12.1957, 3 pp. in-8°

« The greatest passion of my life has been my love for the Africans! »

LAMARTINE (de), Alphonse (1790-1869)

Autograph letter signed « Al. de Lamartine » to Stéphanie de Virieu
Paris, 14th April 1841, 3 p. 1/2 in-8° on laid paper

« Was he not also my brother, and more than many brothers? »

HUGO, Victor (1802-1885)

Autograph draft of a poem fragment
N.p.n.d, [Guernesey, c. 1854], 1 p. in-12° on thin blue paper

« Ils ouvrent cette nuit que nul rayon ne perce / Ils y font brusquement tomber à la renverse / Les pâles cadavres béants ! »

GONCOURT (de), Edmond (1822-1896)

Autograph letter signed « Edmond de Goncourt » to a lady
N.p, 5 7bre [September] [18]93, 2 p. in-8°

« Jules’ coffin has remained intact, and so there is now, without new digging, a place for Edmond de Goncourt »

PISSARRO, Camille (1830-1903)

Autograph letter signed « C. Pissarro » to Théo Van Rysselberghe
[Bruges, Hôtel du] Singe d’Or, 3rd July [18]94, 2 p. in-8°

« I still have in my ear the sound of the waves and the color of the sea in my eye, you must have had beautiful effects last night »

CHATEAUBRIAND (de), François-René (1768-1848)

Autograph letter to Léonce de Lavergne
Paris, 6th August 1838, 3 p. 1/2 small in-4° on bifolio

« I walked on this beach where Bonaparte took his last step »

BAUDELAIRE, Charles (1821-1867)

Autograph letter signed « Charles » to his mother, Madame Aupick
[Paris], 1^st July 1853, 3 p. in-8°

« What is quite certain is that I no longer want to give anything to chance in my life, and that I claim that the will occupies the full extent of it »

[ZOLA] FLAUBERT, Gustave (1821-1880)

Autograph letter signed « Votre vieux Gve Flaubert » to Emile Zola
Croisset, Sunday [15 février 1880], 3 p. in-8°

« Nana turns into myth, without ceasing to be real »

VACHER, Joseph (1869-1898)

Autograph letter signed « Joseph Vacher » to doctor Lacassagne
[Prison of] Belley, le 30 Xbre [December] 1897, 4 p. in-8°

Letter of a serial killer

DUMAS (père), Alexandre 1802-1870

Autograph letter signed « A Dumas » to the « Patriarch of Jerusalem »
S.l, 15 April [18]47, 2 p. 1/2 in-8°, with autograph envelope

« It’s only by working 18 hours a day that I can not cope with everyone, but support myself »

SAND, George (1804-1876)

Autograph letter signed « G Sand » to Charles Duvernet
[Nohant], 11th June [18]61, 1 p. in-8°

« I have a lot to tell you about my travels and encounters »

[RIMBAUD] VERLAINE, Paul (1844-1896)

Les Hommes d’Aujourd’hui 
Original edition, n°318, 4 pp. in-4°

Proof copy with autograph corrections by Verlaine

FLAUBERT, Gustave (1821-1880)

Autograph letter signed « Gve Flaubert » to Pauline Sandeau
[Croisset], Saturday [16th November 1867], 3 p. in-8° on blue laid paper

« After that one, good evening! I will say goodbye to the bourgeois for the rest of my life »

[CHAR] ARAGON, Louis (1897-1982)

Autograph letter signed « Aragon » (draft), to René Char
[Paris, 10th August 1946], 1 p. 1/2 in-4°

« I do not accept to be lectured, I admit even less that it is claimed to be given to Esla. And the Olympian tone of your letter proves to me that if there are some who get lost, it is only in the image of kicking the ass »

[BAUDELAIRE] VERLAINE, Paul (1844-1896)

Autograph letter signed twice « Paul Verlaine » to Léon Deschamps
Paris, 23rd August 1892, 3 p. in-12° on bi-folio

« Baudelaire was my dearest fanaticism and is, that is to say, will remain one of my greatest admiration »

[DREYFUS AFFAIR] ZOLA, Emile (1840-1902)

APOLLINAIRE, Guillaume (1880-1918)

First draft manuscript for the poem “Le Voyageur”, from the poem collection Alcools
N.p.n.d [c. 1909-1910], 2 p. in-4to, black ink, multiple corrections

« Deux matelots qui ne s’étaient jamais quittés »

[DELACROIX] SAND, George (1804-1876)

Autograph letter signed « George Sand » to Eugène Delacroix
[Nohant], 1^st December [18]52, 2 p. in-8°

« No one understands you better than I do »

GUYOTAT, Pierre (1940-2020)

Autograph manuscript
N.p.n.d, 6 p. in-folio

« Jean de la Fontaine: Very handsome boy, very whore »

PASTEUR, Louis (1822-1895)

Autograph letter signed « L. Pasteur » to Professor Charles Bouchard
Paris, 19 July 1888, 3 pages in-8 on double sheet

“We have tested his immunity by inoculation on the brain’s surface”

KEROUAC, Jack (1922-1969)

Typed letter signed twice « Jack » and « Jack Kerouac » to Granville H. Jones
[Northport, New York, 22 November 1960] 2 p. in-4°, with envelope

« It is the only thing too that has made me happy in three years, since the publication of On the Road and the subsequent sickeningness of ‘being famous’ »

MODIGLIANI, Amedeo (1884-1920)

Autograph letter signed « Modigliani » to art dealer Léopold Zborowski
[Nice, New year’s eve 31th December 1918], 2 pp. in-8°

« I sold all the paintings. Send the money quickly. Champagne flows »

LAWRENCE, David Herbert (1885-1930)

Autograph letter signed “DH Lawrence” to George Conway
Hôtel Beau Rivage, Bandol, 29th December 1928, 2 p. in-8°, with envelope

« We have lived too long to be shocked by words any more »

JACOB, Max (1876-1944)

Autograph letter signed « Max Jacob » to a friend
St Benoît-sur-Loire, Loiret, 23 Feb[ruary] 1926, 2 p. in-8°

« Valadon is a great artist who feels deeply and has a great science. She doesn’t have the place she deserves »

CLAUDEL, Paul (1868-1955)

Autograph manuscript signed « Paul Claudel »
N.p, 4th January 1951, 2 p. in-4°

« Joan is tied to her pole which represents faith. She is rooted in an immutable certainty »

HUGO, Victor (1802-1885)

Autograph « VH » à Léon Gatayes
[Paris], 29th May 1843 (postal mark), 1 p. in-8°

« The day we play Les Burgraves »

ARTAUD, Antonin (1896-1948)

Autograph letter signed “Antonin Artaud” to his sister Marie-Ange Malausséna
Espalion, 11th April 1946, 4 pages in-8

“High-dose heroin does not cause addiction when it is of good quality”

RIMBAUD, Arthur (1854-1891)

Autograph manuscript signed twice « Rimbaud », to Armand Savouré
Harar, 30 March 1890, 1/2 p. in-4°

Unpublished receipt from Harar intended to Armand Savouré, the last before Rimbaud ceased all activity with him

LUBICZ-MILOSZ (de), Oscar Vladislas (1877-1939)

Autograph letter signed “Votre Milosz” [to Hugues Fouras
[14th March 1938], 2 pages in-8°

“I am at ease to be able to attach to this fold a final copy of the XVII Poems”

COCTEAU, Jean (1889-1963)

Autograph letter signed with his star drawing to à Jean Marais
N.p.n.d [1940], 1 p. large in-4°

« I adore you and I bless you »

STAËL (de), Germaine (1766-1817)

Autograph letter to Claire de Duras
N.p.n.d, “Sunday” [after 1815], 1 p. in-12°

« Will you go this evening to visit Mde de la Châtre ? »

DUMAS (père), Alexandre 1802-1870

Autograph letter signed « AlexDumas » to M. Bouquié
N.p.n.d [c. 1852], 1 p. in-12° on bifolio

« Do you please bring either Adele or anyone else – I’ll bring Charlotte »

[LAMARTINE] LAMARTINE (de), Valentine (1821-1894)

Autograph letter signed « Valentine de Lamartine » to Victor de Laprade
Paris, 31st May 1872, 4 pp. in-8° on mourning paper

« Thank you, thank you for thus satisfying yourself in my work, the last worship that I can still render to the One who has been the Happiness and glory of my life. »

FRANCE, Anatole (1844-1924)

Autograph letter signed « Anatole Fr. » to Claudius Popelin
Hohwald, 17th April [1882], 1 p. in-8°

« There are pretty ladies »

MONET, Claude (1840-1926)

Autograph letter signed « Claude Monet » [to Alice Hoschedé]
N.p.n.d, « Saturday 6h » [c. 1882-1883], 2 p. in-8°

« There is an awful weather here with fog to see nothing and yet I worked »

GIDE, André (1869-1951)

Autograph letter signed « André Gide » to Charles Chanvin
Cuverville, c. 1900, 3 p. in-8°

« I am happy to see how much you have been able to make yourself loved by some rare friends… and my wife »

GIONO, Jean (1895-1970)

Autograph letter signed « Jean » to Blanche Meyer
[Manosque] Friday evening [fall 1949], 3 p. in-8°

« I remember the sound of rain on the leaves and those great gestures both desperate and loving that the tall trees deploy in the autumn rain »

RENARD, Jules (1864-1910)

Autograph letter signed « Jules Renard » à Georges Moreau
[Paris], 22nd May 1896, 1 p. in-8° on laid paper

« Would it be nice for you to reproduce… the two drawings form the cover of Vallotton? »

TRIOLET, Elsa (1896-1970)

Autograph letter signed « Elsa » to Georgik [Georges Sadoul]
Moscow, 2nd July [1932], 3 p. grand in-4°, à l’encre bleue

« I have not read the manifesto of the surrealists. No interest in these operatic howls that they scream in their corner »

ZOLA, Alexandrine (1839-1925)

Autograph letter signed « Alexandrine Zola » to Gabriel Thyébaut
[Paris], 7 8bre [octobre] 1906, 8 pp. in-8° à l’encre violette sur papier de deuil

« I always think I die at every step, when I go up to this study in which life has also gone »

[VALÉRY, Paul] Henri MANUEL (1874-1947)

Portrait of Paul Valéry, period film print
[Paris, c. 20’s], cabinet format

Handsome and scarce portrait of Paul Valéry by Henri Manuel

SUPERVIELLE, Jules (1884-1960)

Period photographic print, signed twice
N.p, 22 Dec[ember] 1952, 23,5 x 17,3 cm

Nice and large autographed print of the writer

STENDHAL, Henri Beyle, dit (1783-1842)

Autograph letter signed « D’Arlimpe » to Pauline Périer-Lagrange
Paris, 10th December [1810], 3 p. 1/2 in-4°

« We get into the habit of displaying the hardness to escape the ridicule of the tender »

SARTRE, Jean-Paul (1905-1980)

Autograph preparatory manuscript for Les Mots
N.p.n.d [c. 1953-1955], 1 p. in-4°

« I became someone, an Other »

PUCCINI, Giacomo (1858-1924)

Illustrated postcard, signed « Giacomo Puccini » with autograph note beam
Torre del Lago, ag° [August] [1]902, 2 p. in-12°

« La Bohème »

PISSARRO, Camille (1830-1903)

Autograph letter signed « C. Pissarro » to Noël Clément-Janin
Paris, 19th Feb[ruary] 1892, 1 p. 1/2 in-8°, with envelope

« Turner, Delacroix, Corot, Courbet, Daumier, Jongkind, Manet, Degas, Monet, Renoir, Cézanne, Guillaumin, Sisley, Seurat ! This is our march. »

MAURRAS, Charles (1868-1952)

Autograph letter signed « Charles Maurras » to Louis-Xavier de Ricard
S.l, 31st December [1892], 15 p. in-8°, bespoke binding by Michel Kieffer

« I confess that I am anti-Jewish without being anti-Semitic »

GRACQ, Julien (1910-2007)

Autograph letter signed « J. Gracq » [to Ariel Denis]
S.l, 5th August [1969], 2 p. in-8°

« I am much more aware than you, necessarily, of the time that has passed from one book to another, time which for me is not a somewhat abstract chronological framework but maturation or aging »

[DELACROIX] DEGAS, Edgar (1834-1917)

Autograph letter signed “Degas” to collector Montagnac
Np, 27 June [18]95, 2 pages in-8°

“I pay you as follow: three pastels from me”

COLETTE (1873-1954)

Autograph letter signed « Colette de Jouvenel » to her « dear Sacha »
[Paris, 1923], 2 pp. in-4°

« “Ripening Seed” will soon be published »

CASSATT, Mary (1844-1926)

Autograph letter signed « Mary Cassatt » to Achille Segard
Villa Angeletto – Grasse, 14th April [1913], 6 p. in-8° on mourning paper

« And then I wanted to be such a great painter, Titian or Rembrandt, just that… »

BORGES, Jorge Luis (1899-1986)

Autograph card-letter signed with his initials to Ricardo Güiraldes
[Buenos Aires, 7th December 1926], 1 p. small in-8°

« Ya con un pie en el estribo en literales vísperas de empamparme »

BELLMER, Hans (1902-1945)

Autograph letter signed « HB » to Joë Bousquet
Revel, Tuesday 11 Sept[ember] 1945, 1 p. in-4° on pink paper

« I write like an articulated doll »

GENET, Jean (1910-1986)

Autograph manuscript (first draft)
N.p.n.d [1971], 4 p. 1/2 in-4°

« The target remained the same: a Negro who thinks… whose book is the announcement and preparation of a black revolution »

[HUGO] Juliette DROUET (1806-1883)

Autograph letter signed « Juliette » to Victor Hugo
N.p, 12 February [1849], 4 pp. in-8°

« I like the violent and expeditious genre »

DEGAS, Edgar (1834-1917)

Autrograph card-letter signed « Degas » to Albert Bartholomé
[Paris, 16th December 1899], 1 p. in-12

« The Forains come to dine with the young Rouart »

STAËL (de), Germaine (1766-1817)

Autograph letter to Claire de Duras
N.p.n.d, 1 p. in-8°

« Come to my house tonight by going to the ball »

CARROLL, Lewis (1832-1898)

Autograph letter signed « C.L. Dodgson » to Mr Burton
Eastbourne, Aug[ust] 25 [18]77, 2 p. in-12° with pink ink

« I hope you will excuse the liberty… I took a few days ago in making friends with your little daughter »

HUGO, Victor (1802-1885)

Autograph fragments for a satirical poem
S.l.n.d [Guernesey, 1870], two teared strips in-4°

« Brunet was once a clown. He was radiant / Above humans by dint of stupidity »

NERVAL (de), Gérard (1808-1855)

Autograph letter signed « Gérard de Nerval » à Pierre Bocage
N.p [Paris], 19th October 1852, 1 p. in-8°

« It seems to me that the cause is not lost »

GAUTIER, Théophile (1811-1872)

Autograph poem signed « Théophile Gautier »
[N.p.n.d], 1 p. in-8° in black ink on blue laid paper

« And on the mournful, doleful hill / I see my final dwelling-place »

CHAR, René (1907-1988)

Period film print, inscribed by Char
[L’Isle-sur-Sorgue], 1960, 1 p. in-8°

« A Marianne, son ami proche »

[BARBÈS] De LAVETIER

Original albumen print by de Lavetier
La Haye, 2th August [1869], cdv format

« à Jules Claretie »

GARCÍA LORCA, Federico (1898-1936)

Original drawing titled « Poesia »
N.p.n.d, 1 p. in-8° on double folio

Touching drawing of the poet soberly titled « Poesia »

MAUPASSANT (de), Guy (1850-1893)

Three autograph letters signed « Guy de Maupassant » to Dr Despaigne
Paris, October, November and December 1891, 9 p. 1/2 in-8° and in-12°

« Crushed by trains, bitten by rabid dogs, chased by assassins »

MAURIAC, François (1885-1970)

Autograph letter signed « Fr » to priest Jacques Laval
7 February [1938 ?], 4 p. grand in-8°

« My tragedy is to have loved above all sincerity and to have ended up with the lie of my life »

[ZÜRN] BELLMER, Hans (1902-1975)

Autograph letter signed « Bellmer » to Marc Duprat
[October 1970 ?], Friday evening, 2 pp. in-8°

« Give Unica your personal impression that I… sincerely regrets having provoked this awful breakup in such a brutal way »

LAMARTINE (de), Alphonse (1790-1869)

Letter signed « Lamartine » to Louis de Jacquelot
Paris, 8 9bre [November 1840], 2 p. in-8°

« The serious circumstances in which we found ourselves made me go out… of my usual calm in politics »

HUGO, Victor (1802-1885)

Autograph notes
[Paris, 1883], on the back of an envelope addressed to him

Moving intimate document of the great man in the last years of his life

FINI, Leonor (1907-1996)

Autograph letter signed « Leonor Fini » [to Gérard Leman]
N.p., « 29th of January » [19]68, 1 p. in-4° with red felt pen

« In October will come out a great monograph about me »

BABEUF, Gracchus (1760-1797)

Autograph letter signed “Babeuf” to his son, Robert Emile Babeuf
Pluviôse [probably handwritten between January 20th and February 8th 1797]

“It is by practising to suffer that one is able to receive with force all the pains of life”

MALRAUX, André (1901-1976)

18 autograph letters and postcards or typed letters, to Minka and Karl-Hans Strauss
Verrières-Le-Buisson and rest of the world, [1971-1976], 19 p. in various formats

« We are back from Japan »

GUITRY, Sacha (1885-1957)

Autograph manuscript
S.l.n.d, 5 p. in-folio, black ink

« I am not a fascist »

PICABIA, Francis (1879-1953)

Autograph letter signed “Francis Picabia” to a gentleman
Paris, 27th November 1938, 1 p. in-4

“It is impossible for me to exhibit at your place”

FINI, Leonor (1908-1996)

Autograph letter signed « Leonor Fini » [to Gérard Leman]
[Saint-Dyé-sur-Loire] « 22 May » [1979], 4 pp. in-folio

« I hate honors »

CAILLEBOTTE, Gustave (1848-1894)

Autograph letter signed « G Caillebotte » to Claude Monet
N. p.n.d, “Friday” [Petit-Gennevilliers, after 1887], 1 p. in-8°

« Extraordinary effect in mass »

CEZANNE, Paul (1839-1906)

Autograph letter signed « Paul Cézanne » to Octave Mirbeau
Aix [en-Provence], 11th July 1903, 2 pp. in-8°

« I continue to seek, to develop through drawing and color the idea of art that I think I have »

ARAGON, Louis (1897-1982)

Autograph letter signed « Aragon » [to Elisabeth de Clermont-Tonnerre]
N.p.n.d, [1950], 1 p. in-4°

« Excuse me, Madam, for not wanting to have lunch with Thomas Mann… »

MAUPASSANT (de), Guy (1850-1893)

Autograph card-letter signed « Maupassant » [to Jacques Normand?]
24 rue Boccador, [Paris, 24th February 1891], 2 p. in-12°

« My head is sick »

CHATEAUBRIAND (de), François-René (1768-1848)

Autograph letter signed « Chateaubriand » to Laure de Cottens
Paris, 27 December 1832, 4 pp. in-4°

« I hoped to work in peace to my memories and never see again a homeland that is no longer one for me »

MAUPASSANT (de), Guy (1850-1893)

Period albumen print by Benque & Co
[c. 1885], mounted on thick cardboard, cabinet format (10,5 x 15,4 cm)

Very scarce portrait of the novelist by Benque & Co