A fascinating dealer's collection of original autograph letters, signed cards and clipped signatures spanning Victorian and twentieth-century literary, royal, political and artistic figures, including Kenneth Grahame.

Bibliographic Details

Author: Various.
Title: Collection of Autograph Letters, Signed Cards and Manuscript Signatures.
Date: Late nineteenth to mid twentieth century.
Contents: Approximately 15 identified autograph items including autograph letters, signed correspondence, clipped signatures and manuscript fragments.
Format: Original manuscript material on paper, various sizes.

Condition

Generally good overall condition for a mixed historical collection. Expected age toning, occasional foxing, folds, creasing and handling wear throughout, with some clipped signatures removed from larger documents. Several items retain their original envelopes or headed stationery. Please examine the gallery photographs carefully or request a more detailed condition report.

Description

An interesting and well-balanced dealer's lot of original autograph material, assembled over many years and comprising a varied collection of literary, royal, political and artistic figures from Britain and America. The group includes complete autograph letters, signed correspondence, clipped signatures and manuscript fragments, many identified in a contemporary dealer's hand.

 There is a desirable clipped signature of Kenneth Grahame, author of The Wind in the Willows. Literary interest is further represented by autograph material from Edward Verrall Lucas, Lawrence Binyon, Edith Sichel (two items), Sir Sidney Lee (two items), Anstey Guthrie ("F. Anstey") and travel writer Henry Vollam Morton.

Political and public figures include Ernest Bevin, Foreign Secretary and one of Britain's leading wartime statesmen; William Temple, Archbishop of Canterbury; Sir Henry Craik; and James Roosevelt, eldest son of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Artistic interest is represented by a clipped signature of the celebrated Pre-Raphaelite painter Frederic, Lord Leighton, together with an autograph of the noted illustrator Sir Bernard Partridge and Judge Richard Baggalay. There is also a small autograph fragment written by King Edward VII on Sandringham stationery,

The collection offers excellent scope for collectors wishing either to preserve it as an eclectic historical archive or to separate the material into individual autograph offerings. Many items are written on attractive period headed paper and retain personal or professional content, making the group considerably more interesting than an assemblage of isolated signatures.

Collections of this type appeal across several collecting disciplines, combining literary autographs, royal memorabilia, political history and manuscript collecting in a single well-identified archive.

Contents

1. F. Anstey (Thomas Anstey Guthrie) – autograph letter.
2. Frederic, Lord Leighton – clipped signature.
3. Ernest Bevin – clipped signature.
4. William Temple – clipped signature.
5. Sir Sidney Lee – autograph letter plus additional item.
6. Edward Verrall Lucas – autograph letter.
7. Edith Sichel – autograph letter plus additional item.
8. Lawrence Binyon – autograph letter.
9. Henry Vollam Morton – signature.
10. Sir Bernard Partridge – signature.
11. James Roosevelt – signature.
12. Sir Henry Craik – autograph letter.
13. King Edward VII – signed manuscript fragment on Sandringham paper.
14. Richard Baggalay – signature.
15. Kenneth Grahame – clipped signature.

Notes

An attractive mixed archive bringing together fifteen identified historical figures across literature, politics, royalty and the arts. An ideal acquisition for autograph collectors or dealers, offering significant scope for further research or individual resale.