TOLSTOÏ, Léon (1828-1910)
Autograph letter (in Russian) signed « Lev Tolstoy » to Ely Danilovitch Halperin-Kaminski
S.l [Russia], 2/14 July 1895, 1 page in-8 on double sheet.
“I’m giving you my authorisation to publish your translation of my work”
Fact sheet
TOLSTOÏ, Léon (1828-1910)
Autograph letter (in Russian) signed « Lev Tolstoy » to Ely Danilovitch Halperin-Kaminski
S.l [Russia], 2/14 (14th for Georgian calendar) July 1895, 1 page in-8 on double sheet.
French translation (Probably by Halperin-Kaminski himself) on page 3
Slight decoloration on bottom part, very slightly creased on top edge.
Rare autograph letter signed by Lev Tolstoy about his novels
Милостивый Государь!
С величайшим удовольствием даю вам своё разрешение печатать ваши переводы моих статей. Перевод ваш я получил, но не имею времени, ни по правде сказать охоты, просматривать его. Если пришлете один или два эквемпляра вашего перевода буду благодарен.
С совершенным уважением Лев Толстой
2/14 июля 1895
Translation:
“Dear sir,
It is with great pleasure that I am giving you my authorisation to publish your translation of my work. I have received your translation, but haven’t had yet time to read it. I would be grateful if you send me one or two examples of the volume.
Yours sincerely,
Lev Tolstoy
2/14 July 1895”
We join:
A period film print representing Tolstoy.
On the backside, a stamping from the Polyglotte company in Riga.
Ely Danilovitch Halperin-Kaminski (1858-1936) was a Russian writer who settled in Paris and became a naturalized French citizen in 1890. He translated many novels from Russian writers, and almost all of Tolstoy’s works, with whom he was in correspondence. By the time this letter was written, Tolstoy was already world famous, War and Peace was published in 1867 / 1869, Anna Karenina in 1877 and The Death of Ivan Ilitch in 1886.