1. Vincent had written to Gauguin shortly before 11 September, as emerges from letter 680 to Theo.

2. Paul Gauguin, The vision after the sermon, 1888 (W308/W245) (Edinburgh, National Galleries of Scotland). Ill. 118 . In 1904 Bernard recounted how Gauguin had offered the painting to the priest of the church in Névez, a village not far from Pont-Aven: ‘Then the priest asked about the subject matter and declared it to be non-religious. If only it clearly portrayed the famous struggle! but those enormous bonnets and peasants’ backs filling the canvas, and the principal subject being reduced, in the distance, to such insignificant proportions!! ...That was not possible, he would be reprimanded...’ (Alors le prêtre questionna sur le sujet, le déclara d’interprétation non religieuse. Si encore cela représentait franchement la fameuse lutte! mais ces énormes bonnets, ces dos de paysannes remplissant la toile, et la chose capitale réduite, au loin, à des proportions si insignifiantes!!... Ce n’était pas possible, on le blâmerait...) See Bernard 1994, vol. 1, p. 78. ‘Chrome yellow 1, 2 and 3’ refer to ‘lemon’, ‘yellow’ and ‘orange’ respectively. For a comprehensive study of this painting see Gauguin’s vision. Belinda Thomson, with Frances Fowle and Lesley Stevenson. Exhib. cat. Edinburgh (National Galleries of Scotland), 2005. Edinburgh 2005.

3. As far as we know, Van Gogh had not written to Gauguin since about 11 September (see n. 1 above). Gauguin must be referring here to Van Gogh’s letter 684 to Bernard, written between Wednesday, 19 and Tuesday, 25 September, in which he reacted to the latter’s refusal to paint Gauguin’s portrait.

4. This letter, which has not survived, was mentioned in letter 635.

5. Van Gogh took a contrary view, as we can also see from a crossed-out scrap of writing on the back of a sketch that he enclosed with letter 693 to Eugène Boch (RM16); the words were addressed to Gauguin. See Jansen et al. 2000.

6. See letter 704, n. 1, for the paintings Bernard took with him to Paris.

7. Laval may have received financial support from Albert Dauprat (see letter 623, n. 4). See Correspondance Gauguin 1984, p. 232.

8. Van Gogh had written to Bernard about the cost of living in Arles in letter 684.