GOETHE, Johann Wolfgang von (1749-1832). Autograph manuscript signed ('Goethe'), a poem, 'Da sieht man wie die Menschen sind', Carlsbad, 5 September 1818.

Price realised GBP 21,250

Estimate

GBP 20,000 – GBP 30,000

Try our

Scroll to top

GOETHE, Johann Wolfgang von (1749-1832). Autograph manuscript signed ('Goethe'), a poem, 'Da sieht man wie die Menschen sind', Carlsbad, 5 September 1818.

Price realised GBP 21,250

Details More from

GOETHE, Johann Wolfgang von (1749-1832). Autograph manuscript signed ('Goethe'), a poem, 'Da sieht man wie die Menschen sind', Carlsbad, 5 September 1818.

8 lines on one page, 230 x 188mm, on a bifolium (remnant of guards on verso of f.2). Envelope, addressed in autograph to 'Graefinn Jaraczewska'. Provenance: Schoyen MS 5556.

'Da sieht man wie die Menschen sind:
Nur Leidenschaft und kein Gewissen'.

A poem about Ondine and bookbinding, presented to a Polish admirer. The circumstances of the composition of the poem are related in Georg Ruppelt. Buchmenschen in Büchern (1997, pp. 39-40): 'During his stay in Karlsbad in 1818, one of Goethe's admirers was the Polish Countess Anna Jaraczewska. After a conversation about Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué's Undine in French translation, which Goethe did not know, she sent him her copy. The little volume was in particularly poor condition, and Goethe, for whom poorly conserved or inadequately bound books were an abomination, passed it on to a bookbinder for restoration. On the return of the book to the countess, he wrote [the poem, 'Da sieht man...'] on an empty leaf of the book' (translation). As is apparent from the present manuscript and its envelope, the poem was in fact sent separately. Goethe's dedication slip from the volume itself ('Ondine Conte admirable. Exemplaire restaure par un Lecteur reconnoissant. Goethe. Carlsbad 3 S[eptember] 1818') was subsequently detached and sold at Sotheby's, 4 December 2002, lot 17. Sophien-Ausgabe, vol.4, p.23.

These lots have been imported from outside the EU or, if the UK has withdrawn from the EU without an agreed transition deal, from outside of the UK for sale and placed under the Temporary Admission regime. Import VAT is payable at 5% on the hammer price. VAT at 20% will be added to the buyer’s premium but will not be shown separately on our invoice.

Brought to you by

Mark Wiltshire

mwiltshire@christies.com +44 (0)20 7752 3188

More from Shakespeare and Goethe: Masterpieces of European Literature from the Schøyen Collection

View All