DICKENS, Charles (1812-1870). - photo 1

DICKENS, Charles (1812-1870).

Lot 78
12.07.2023 00:00UTC +00:00
Classic
Sold
£ 2 520
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUnited Kingdom, London
Buyer Premiumsee on Website%
Archive
The auction is completed. No bids can be placed anymore.
Archive
ID 993283
Lot 78 | DICKENS, Charles (1812-1870).
Estimate value
£ 1 000 – 1 500
DICKENS, Charles (1812-1870).

Autograph letter signed ('Charles Dickens') to Edmund [Yates], 5 Hyde Park Place, London, 14 March 1870.

One page, 178 x 113mm, on a bifolium with printed address of Gad's Hill Place.



'I take my leave of Public Reading tomorrow night'. Having discovered that Yates was away from home on Saturday night, Dickens has asked his promotors Chappell & Co. to send his tickets to Dickens's London address, from where he will forward them to Yates's wife. He goes on: 'Pray explain to Mr Sothern from me what he evidently does not know: – that I take my leave of Public Reading tomorrow night, and that I have pledged my word to the fact, in print, every day for the last four or five months'.



Dickens's enormously successful public readings from his works, which he launched in 1858, became almost a second career: from 1866 onwards, these were organised by the music publishers and concert promotors Chappell & Co., for a nightly fee which reached £80 by 1870. He had begun a long farewell series of performances in October 1868: 'Now included in Dickens's repertory was a highly sensational new reading derived from Oliver Twist (the murder of Nancy), the performance of which became almost an obsession with him despite warnings by doctors and friends that it was adversely affecting his health. In fact, by late April 1869 he had become so unwell that his doctors ordered him to abandon the tour. Anxious to compensate Chappells for the loss they had sustained, he prevailed on his doctor to allow him to present a final series of twelve readings in London (January–March 1870). He famously ended the last of these by saying, "From these garish lights I vanish now for evermore with a heartfelt, grateful, respectful and affectionate farewell"' (ODNB). He died less than three months later. The recipient is the writer Edmund Yates (1831-1894), a close friend of Dickens's for many years.





Special notice

This lot is offered without reserve.
Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
8 King Street, St. James's
SW1Y 6QT London
United Kingdom
Preview
12.07.2023 – 12.07.2023
Phone +44 (0)20 7839 9060
Email
4FQ.AYGKAGLUQ@FO3G@
Buyer Premium see on Website
Conditions of purchaseConditions of purchase

More from Creator

First American and first English Pic Nic Papers
First American and first English Pic Nic Papers
$100
American Notes for General Circulation
American Notes for General Circulation
$100
David Copperfield
David Copperfield
$4 000
The Mystery of Edwin Drood
The Mystery of Edwin Drood
$100
The Village Coquettes
The Village Coquettes
$100
A Tale of Two Cities, the Blair copy
A Tale of Two Cities, the Blair copy
$18 000
Charles Dickens (1812-1870)
Charles Dickens (1812-1870)
£30 000
[Charles Dickens (1812-1870)] – Hablot Knight Browne ['Phiz'] (1815-1882)
[Charles Dickens (1812-1870)] – Hablot Knight Browne ['Phiz'] (1815-1882)
£40 000

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.