Large autograph letter (folded leaf; 4 full pages), handwritten and signed by the celebrated French author Honoré de Balzac. Wierzchownia estate, Ukraine, 3 January 1849. French.
The letter, addressed to Parisian publisher Hippolyte Souverain, is a remarkable historical and sociological document. Written while staying at the estate of his beloved (and future wife) Countess Ewelina Hańska, near the great Jewish center of Berditchev. In his letter, Balzac reveals himself as a seasoned businessman, involved in complex business dealings and analyzing financial systems, topics that were also an inseparable part of his literary production.
The letter revolves around a deal to purchase the valuable insect collection of naturalist Richard Henry Dupont for Countess Hańska's son-in-law, Georges Mniszech. Balzac directs Souverain to serve as the "straw man" in the deal, in order to escape financial restrictions of the Russian Empire limiting transfer of money to the West.
Balzac describes at length the trade channels between France and Ukraine, highlighting the key role of Jewish bankers in the financial system: "The relations between Berditchev and Paris are in the hands of Jewish houses, and it costs 15% of whatever sum one sends from here to Paris or from Paris to here". He calls Halperin's bank in Berditchev "the Rothschilds of Poland, Ukraine, Tartaria, Mongolia and even some of Persia". He recounts how his friendship with the Rothschild family in Paris helped him win low duties at Halperin's bank in Berditchev: "It costs 15% tax… I paid 12% because I was a friend of the Rothschilds, and I earned a warm recommendation from those in Paris to Halperin's bank…".
At the same time, the letter reflects the stereotypes and preconceived notions characteristic of Balzac's time towards the negotiation strategies of Jewish merchants: "I am too concerned for your good name to ask you to do the kind of thing Polish Jews usually do: they offer 10 centimes for what they would pay 100 francs for, hoping that… the seller will lose patience around 60 francs". He complains of high interest rates, writing that "the greed of the bankers is such that last year, in Dubno, they asked me for 17% in order to give me… Frankfurt market value for my Russian securities". The letter is signed at the edge of the fourth page.
In the concluding part of the letter, Balzac discusses the lack of books and high-quality objects in his stay in Ukraine, asking the publisher Souverain to send him the memoirs of Chateaubriand, a Parisian periodical and copies of works by Charles Augustin Sainte-Beuve and Samuel-Henri Berthoud. He also adds a personal request: "If you could enclose with this package a beautiful pair of dustpan and tongs with beautiful handles in chiseled and gilt copper, that would enable me to deal with the fire, as in all of these provinces there is neither dustpan nor tongs, and if I have a fireplace I also need tools to use it".
The insect collection purchased in this dealing formed the basis of the Mniszech collection, regarded as the largest European collection of insects in the 19th century, now held in the National Museum of Natural History in Paris.
Reference:
Daszkiewicz, Piotr, "Documents inédits concernant l’histoire et la vente de la collection entomologique de Georges Vandalin Mniszech (1822-1881)", in Le Coléoptère. 16/2, 2013, pp. 80-82.
[1] double leaf (4 pages). 27 cm. Good-fair condition. Folding marks. Creases and minor tears. Open tears to four corners, affecting some letters, some repaired with paper.
