1. A letter from Van Gogh to Gauguin and Bernard, written between the preceding letter and this one, has been lost; see letter 680, n. 4.

2. Milliet the Zouave was introduced to Bernard in letter 628.

3. Van Gogh suspected that Bernard’s plan to come to Arles was a ‘whim’, so in letter 682 he advised Theo not to offer Bernard, who was perhaps thinking of taking Gauguin’s place, any sort of contract.

4. It would appear that Van Gogh did not finish this sentence. After ‘pourtant’ he originally wrote: ‘ou si un autre viendrait a sa place’ (‘or if someone else were to come in his place’), but then crossed it out.

5. This study, which Van Gogh painted at the beginning of September, and which, judging by his choice of words, he must have mentioned in the lost letter, was The night café (F 463 / JH 1575 ).

6. This passage reflects the ideas of Bernard and Gauguin, who were constantly urging Van Gogh to work from memory and the imagination. He followed their advice to the extent of undertaking a few experiments.

7. Van Gogh is referring to Gauguin’s stay in tropical Martinique between May and October 1887.