Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869-1948) - photo 1

Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869-1948)

Sold
£ 20 000
Auction dateClassic
30.07.2020 00:00UTC +01:00
Auctioneer
CHRISTIE'S
Event location
United Kingdom, London
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Archive
ID 381250
Lot 42 | Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869-1948)
GANDHI, Mohandas Karamchand (1869-1948). Autograph letter signed ('Love, Bapu') to Shanta [?Patel], Segaon, 23 April 1938.

In English. One page, c.165 x c.150mm. Framed (430 x 570 x 25mm) alongside a black-and-white photograph of Gandhi. Provenance: Susan Kerville Gallery, Australia - purchased by the present owner in December 1985.

An affectionate letter from Gandhi to a 'dear daughter', sent with love; apparently unpublished. 'I am glad. Let God's will be done. Had you any doubt that I loved you as a dear daughter, may God bless you. You will follow my advice as to your food, won't you?'.

The recipient of the present letter is probably Shanta S. Patel, daughter of Shankarbhai Patel (see The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi (2000), v. 65, p.1); the family appear to have been close associates of Gandhi, whose first letters to Shanta, written in 1930, are directed to a young girl, chiding her on her handwriting and advising her on her behaviour and diet. The letters that follow display the same paternal tone and it seems that Gandhi took some responsibility for Shanta's wellbeing after the death of her father. On 16 September 1934, Gandhi wrote to Shanta in response to her request for permission to marry for love outside of her own caste; her name reappears in a letter of 4 August 1937, in which he writes: 'Did I tell you that Shanta did not go to England, her mother having practically stopped her? She is very happy with Mahadev and very useful to him', presumably referring to a placement found for her with Mahadev Desia, Gandhi's personal secretary.

Apparently unpublished.
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09.07.2020 – 30.07.2020
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