LISZT Franz (1811-1886)

Lot 220
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3000 - 4000 EUR
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Result : 6 500EUR
LISZT Franz (1811-1886)
L.A.S. "F. Liszt", Vienna, August 6, 1846, to Count Gustave de NEIPPERG]; 5.5 pages in-8 on blue paper with crowned BATH stamp; in French. A curious letter attesting to Liszt's interest in phrenology, on the eve of his last major European tour. Dr. Michel Arthur CASTLE, who lived in Milan, was the author of some 2000 phrenological studies of living people, including Liszt, and counted among his disciples and admirers Count Gustave de Neipperg. Chapter XVI of the picturesque journey to Italy. Northern Part (1855) of Paul de Musset, evokes among the memories of Milan before 1848, the Count of Neipperg, an adept of phrenology, and the visit they made to Dr. Castle, citing at length the phrenological study that Castle had devoted to Liszt.] He ordered his secretary Belloni "to finish the Castle manuscripts case at all costs, and as soon as possible"... He consulted his friend Rey, "one of the drafters of the Constitution, and a man of honour and talent, who has already often proved his worth, for the revision of translations, including that of the History of the Ottoman Empire of Hammer", about their "phrenological study. Rey's opinion is entirely that of Janin, and others who are familiar with the French press and publications. I will communicate it in substance to Castle during his visit to Vienna"... Liszt then goes into detail about the "pecuniary arrangement" proposed by the bookseller, for a print run of 100 or 200 copies at the author's expense. "I'll try to explain all this to Castle in an American, clear and concise way. It is almost impossible to judge certain Parisian reports (those of advertising for example) without having made a fairly long and practical stay there. If he accepts one of Rey's two proposals, I will ensure that you receive the first copies by the end of November at the latest. According to a letter from Janin (very funny) it will be absolutely essential to remove the chapter on sexual appetites... It won'
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