ALS in French, signed “Bartholdi,” one page both sides, 5 x 8, 33 Mercer Street letterhead, no date but likely circa 1886. Letter to friend and fellow Statue of Liberty collaborator Georges Glaenzer, in part (translated): "I was at Falk's and when I left I wanted to say hello to you, but I was not able to stop. I was pleased to see your studio beginning to catch on; I hope that you will find the satisfactions and encouragements you so richly deserve…I beg you to show us the friendship of coming to dine with us at 7 pm Sunday (at 126 W 42nd St.) with Mrs. Glaenzer, your dear father-in-law and one or two friends, all of it informal, in working clothes [so that we can] spend a few tranquil moments together before departure." In fine condition. The "33 Mercer Street" letterhead signifies the Franco-American Union's New York headquarters; the Franco-American Union was formed to raise the funds for the project officially known as 'Liberty Enlightening the World,' commonly known as the Statue of Liberty. On October 28, 1886, Bartholdi and Glaezner, along with President Grover Cleveland and other dignitaries, attended the inauguration ceremonies of the Statue of Liberty. The monumental sculpture had taken over twenty years to conceive, design, construct, transport, and assemble. Georges Glaezner was one of the people who made it possible, as secretary of the French commission charged with fundraising for the statue. His father-in-law, Richard Butler, was a rubber manufacturing magnate who served as an officer on the Franco-American Union fundraising committee. Bartholdi's passing reference to the studio of New York celebrity photographer Benjamin Falk suggests that the publicity-minded sculptor may have had his picture taken there to commemorate his last American trip.
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