Arranging a lecture on "The South Seas" - photo 1
Arranging a lecture on "The South Seas" - photo 2
Arranging a lecture on "The South Seas" - photo 3

Arranging a lecture on "The South Seas"

Lot 652
14.09.2022 10:00UTC -05:00
Classic
Sold
$ 8 190
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUSA, New York
Archive
The auction is completed. No bids can be placed anymore.
Archive
ID 797290
Lot 652 | Arranging a lecture on "The South Seas"
Estimate value
$ 8 000 – 12 000
MELVILLE, Herman (1819-1891). Autograph letter signed ("H. Melville") to W[illiam] H. Barry, Pittsfield, 12 February 1859.

Two pages, bifolium 203 x 125mm (toned along top margin, partial separations along fold). Blue cloth chemise and slipcase.

Melville arranges a lecture in Lynn, Massachusetts. Melville writes that he “should be happy to lecture at Lynn, if we can agree on the time &c." Though he warns that at the "latter part of next week I leave for the West, to be gone two weeks, more or less. Upon my return I shall be able to name an exact day…” He advises Barry that he has to lectures to offer, “The South Seas,” and “Statues in Rome,” and adds if “you intimate you should like me to deliver both, well and good.” As to his fee, he was of the mind “that, in the present case, thirty dollars for each lecture would not be too much,” and adds that if Barry desires both, then they should be scheduled “on successive nights, or at least upon nights near together as possible.” According to Sealts, Melville delivered his lecture, "The South Seas," on 15 May 1859 at Sagamore Hall in Lynn (Melville as Lecturer, pp. 91-92). William H. Barry appeared in the 1860 Lynn Directory as a shoemaker as well as a member of the Lynn Young Men’s Debating Society, 1852-54 (citing David N. Johnson, Sketches of Lynn, 1880). Published in Horth, pp. 334-335. Provenance: Charles E. Feinberg (his sale, Parke Bernet, 2-3 April 1968).
‌
‌Exhibited: "A Herman Melville Collection ... on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of his death, from the collection of William S. Reese," Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University, 1991, no. 30.

Place of origin:USA
Auction house category:Letters, documents and manuscripts
Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
20 Rockefeller Plaza
10020 New York
USA
Preview
01.09.2022 – 14.09.2022
Phone +1 212 636 2000
Fax +1 212 636 4930
Email
4FQ.AYGKAGLUQ@FO3G@
Conditions of purchaseConditions of purchase
Shipping Postal service
Courier service
pickup by yourself
Payment methods Wire Transfer
Business hoursBusiness hours
Mo 09:30 – 17:00   
Tu 09:30 – 17:00   
We 09:30 – 17:00   
Th 09:30 – 17:00   
Fr 09:30 – 17:00   
Sa closed
Su closed

Related terms

Frequently asked questions

First of all, you should register to be able to purchase at auction. After confirming your email address, enter your personal information in your user profile, such as your first name, last name, and mail address. Choose a lot from the upcoming auction and the maximum amount you want to place on it. After confirmation of your choice, we will send your application by e-mail to the appropriate auction house. If the auction house accepts a request, it will participate in the auction. You can view the current status of a bid at any time in your personal account in the "Bids" section.
Auctions are performed by auction houses and each of the auction houses describes their terms of auction. You can see the texts in the section "Auction information".
The results of the auction are published within a few days after the end of the auction. In the top menu of the site, find the tab "Auctions". Click on it and you will be on the auction catalog page, where you can easily find the category "Results". After opening it, select the desired auction from the list, enter and view the current status of the interested lot.
The information about the auction winners is confidential. The auction winner will receive a direct notification from the auction house responsible with instructions for further action: an invoice for payment and the manner in which the goods will be received.
Each of the auction houses has its own payment policy for the won lots. All auction houses accept bank transfers, most of them accept credit card payments. In the near future you will find detailed information for each case in the section "Auction information" on the page of the auction catalog and the lot.
Shipment of the won lot depends on its size. Small items can be delivered by post. Larger lots are sent by courier. Employees of the auction houses will offer you a wide range to choose from.
No. The archive serves as a reference for the study of auction prices, photographs and descriptions of works of art.