LS, one page, 7.25 x 8.75, June 7, 1817. Adams, then American Minister to England writes from London to consul Thomas Aspinwall. In full: “I received your letter of yesterdays date & shall be very glad to have the insurance made upon the terms you mention. If the Policy is not yet made out I will thank you to have two hundred pounds of it marked for Books for the Secretary of State instead of one hundred and fifty. The Portrait at Mrs. Copley’s No. 25 George Street Hanover Square is ready packed & will be delivered to your order whenever you shall send for it. It is to be shipped you will recollect with the boxes of my books which you have for Boston....” John Singleton Copley (1738–1815), the most renowned American artist of the Colonial era, painted his well-known portrait of the young diplomat Adams in 1796, when both were in London. Created at the behest of Copley’s wife as a gift for her good friend and Adams’ mother, Abigail Adams, the portrait now resides in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. At the time of writing, Adams was preparing his return to the United States, at the request of President James Monroe, to serve as Secretary of State. In fine condition, with wrinkling, intersecting folds, and short edge separations (touching one word). Auction LOA John Reznikoff/PSA/DNA and R&R COA.
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