TURGENEV I.S., PROSPER MÉRIMÉE, VALENTINE DELESSERT, TURGENEV I.S. (1818-1883) Handwritten letters and photographs. 1860s.

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Two handwritten letters addressed to Valentina Delesser: 1) Baden, 8 March 1865. 3 с. Paper with initials «J.T.» blind embossing. In French. Letter written just over ten days after the wedding of his daughter Pelagia Ivanovna by Gaston Brewer, a relative of Madame Delessert. 2) Baden, 22 October 1865. 4 с. Paper with initials «J.T.» blind embossing. In French. Photograph of I.S. Turgenev. St. Petersburg, Wesenberg & Co. workshop, [1860s]. MÉRIMÉE P. (1803-1870) Three handwritten letters addressed to I. Turgenev (20.6 x 13.5 cm): 1) Cannes, 18 January [1861]. 4 с. Paper with initials «B.D.» blind embossing. In French with separate phrases in Russian. 2) [April 16, 1861] 1.5 pp. In French with separate phrases in Russian. 3) Paris, 10 May 1864. 3 с. Paper with initials «B.D.» blind embossing. In French with separate phrases in Russian. The letter is published in the general correspondence vol. XII, p. 125. The letters are published: Parturier M. Une amitie litteraire: Prosper Merimee et Ivan Tourgueniev. Paris: Hachette, 1952. Turgenev met Mérimée at the start of 1857, when the French writer was already well known in Russia. The relationship between the two writers was multifaceted. Turgenev introduced Mérimée to Russian literature (Leo Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, M. Vovchok, and others), helped him with his sketches of Russian history from the 16th-18th centuries and the short story Loquis, and shared with him his creative plans, in particular, he reported in detail on the idea of a historical novel about Nikita Pustosvyat. Pushkin figures prominently in Mérimée’s letters to Turgenev. Mérimée constantly asked Turgenev about the Russian poet, sharing his thoughts on Pushkin. In the 1860s, Mérimée acted as an active promoter of the works of Turgenev himself in France. A separate edition of the French translation of Fathers and Children was published in 1863, with a preface by Mérimée, written in the form of a letter to the publisher Charpentier. Pushkin featured prominently in Merimee’s letters to Turgenev. Mérimée constantly asked Turgenev about the Russian poet, sharing his thoughts on Pushkin.