ALS in French, signed “Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec,” four pages on two adjoining sheets, 4.25 x 6.5, circa August 1879. Handwritten letter to his great aunt, incorporating a detailed drawing of a carriage pulled by horses. The young artist describes with great wit his pilgrimage to Lourdes, and a stay in Barèges with his parents. Tragically, within a few days of writing this letter, Toulouse-Lautrec broke his right leg in Barèges, having already broken his left leg the previous year, leaving him with lifelong injuries.
In part (translated): "We arrived last night after a very good trip, although a little hot. Our car was full almost all the time. There was a baby who was also going to the pilgrimage and changing clothes from time to time who knocked over a large glass of wine. We have been several times to the grotto and we have not forgotten you… Sunday at vespers we sang very well and a good priest read us the story of a miracle, but he spoiled his speech by adding that since the event that took place last year the person who received the miracle had put on twenty pounds in weight… We left the next day at eight o'clock and arrived safely after several long hours spent in a horse-drawn coach." At the bottom of the third page, Toulouse-Lautrec draws the coach. Then he evokes their arrival in Barèges: "We are eating at the hotel. I have already taken a bath." In the postscript, he adds various comments, including: "Thank you for the pie which was excellent." In very good to fine condition, with unobtrusive repairs to a tear, a fold, and the hinge. A superb letter boasting Toulouse-Lautrec's scarce full signature, plus a remarkably detailed original sketch that demonstrates the burgeoning talents of the 14-year old artist.
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