025 To Theo van Gogh. Helvoirt, Friday, 10 July 1874.

metadata

No. 025 (Brieven 1990 025, Complete Letters 18)
From: Vincent van Gogh
To: Theo van Gogh
Date: Helvoirt, Friday, 10 July 1874

Source status

Original manuscript

Location

Amsterdam, Van Gogh Museum, inv. no. b18 V/1962

Date

Letter headed: ‘Helvoirt 10 Juli 1874’.

original text

1r:1

Helvoirt 10 Juli 1874

Waarde Theo,

Dank voor de informaties die je genomen hebt, nu blijven wij een dag langer & zullen dus Woensdag morgen te Londen aankomen.─

De photogr. die in den catalogus van Forbes1 lag had ik hier reeds aan jou gegeven, daar ik dacht dat het, de Schelde & dus Belgiën zijnde, je interresseeren zou. t’Is naar een Sch^ij van Cap.2 ’t Is zoo heel mooi niet maar ten minste origineel. Ik schrijf je spoedig uit Londen. Heb het goed.─

Vincent.

translation

1r:1

Helvoirt, 10 July 1874

My dear Theo,

Thanks for the information you got. We’re now staying a day longer and will arrive in London on Wednesday morning.

I gave you the photo in the Forbes catalogue1 here already, because I thought it would interest you, being the Scheldt and therefore Belgium. It’s of a painting by Cap.2 It’s not so very beautiful, but at least it’s original. I’ll write to you soon from London. I wish you well.

Vincent.

notes

1. The Englishman James Staats Forbes, a long-time resident of The Hague, collected paintings made by artists of the Barbizon School and the Hague School. Van Gogh was undoubtedly referring to the catalogue James S. Forbes, London (Christie’s), 23 May 1874, compiled when Forbes had c. 150 works from his country estate – including ten paintings by Israëls – put up for auction. See exhib. cat. Paris 1983, pp. 125-126; Sillevis 1988, p. 144; and Dekkers 1994, esp. pp. 139-140, 357.

2. Reproduction of a painting by Constant Aimé Marie Cap which depicts the River Scheldt. It is not known which photograph Vincent gave to Theo.