1. Giuseppe de Nittis sold his work through Goupil. On the basis of the sketch in the upper left-hand corner of the letter, J.G. van Gelder concluded that the work Van Gogh is referring to here is Victoria Embankment in London, 1875 (sold at auction at Sotheby’s New York, October 1989). Ill. 1729 [1729]. See Van Gelder 1974.
There is however a striking difference in viewpoint between the painting and Van Gogh’s sketch, which in this respect more closely resembles four similar works by De Nittis: Victoria Embankment in London, Westminster Bridge (I), Westminster Bridge (II) and Westminster Bridge (III). See Dini and Marini 1990, p. 397, cat. no. 542 (Victoria Embankment in London) and p. 405, cat. nos. 712-714 (Westminster Bridge I-III). Dini and Marini did not date the paintings; the date of completion is known only of Westminster Bridge (I) (1863). Moreover, Victoria Embankment in London clearly shows a sunny day, whereas Van Gogh speaks of a ‘rainy day’ (l. 11). Cf. also Caroline Igra, ‘Spatial engineer and social recorder: Giuseppe de Nittis and the development of nineteenth-century cityscape imagery’, Van Gogh Museum Journal 1998. Amsterdam 1999, pp. 94-103; esp. pp. 96-97.
[1729] [943] [52] [53] [54]
2. Rückert’s ‘Aus der Jugendzeit’ (From childhood) expresses a yearning for lost youth; ‘Mitternacht’ (Midnight) is an expression of Weltschmerz, deliverance from which is sought in God. For these poems, see Rückert 1868-1869, vol. 5, pp. 29-30 and vol. 2, pp. 465-466.
3. Alfred de Musset’s long poem, ‘La nuit de décembre’ (A night in December) is about a man who continually sees a sorrowful ghost who resembles him like a brother. At the end the ghost reveals his identity: he is Loneliness and will be the man’s companion for ever. See Musset 1957, pp. 310-315, 737-742. On p. [1r:4] of letter 31, the eighteenth stanza of ‘La nuit de Décembre’ was written by another hand. See also letter 726, n. 16.
4. A French bible and L’imitation de Jésus-Christ; see letter 38, ll. 45-46.
top