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Lot #489
James Joyce

Rare handwritten letter from Joyce—"Please excuse Lucia from her lesson"

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Estimate: $4500+
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Description

Rare handwritten letter from Joyce—"Please excuse Lucia from her lesson"

ALS, one page, 5.25 x 6.75, Victoria Place Hotel letterhead, May 3, 1924. Letter to Miss Russell, in full: "Will you please please excuse Lucia from her lesson; for a few days as she is not feeling very well lately and, I think, she ought to avoid any strain." In fine condition, with some light toning, and faint staining and some creasing the upper left corner. In August 1923, Joyce and his family took up residence in the elegant Victoria Palace Hotel, and remained there until September 1924, the very month this letter was written. During this same period Joyce had begun drafting Finnegans Wake, in particular the ‘Shaun the post’ episode. The recipient, "Miss Russell," may well have been a dance instructor of the 19-year-old Lucia; she would begin training at the Dalcroze Institute in Paris the following year. Handwritten letters from Joyce are among the rarest and most desirable of all the literary greats.

Auction Info

  • Auction Title: Fine Autographs and Artifacts
  • Dates: #504 - Ended July 12, 2017





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