Meyerbeer, Giacomo. (1791-1864) [Dumas, Alexandre. (1802-1870)]
Autograph Letter to Dumas
Autograph letter. 1 page with integral address leaf. In French, penned in black ink, about changing the time for a rendezvous. Undated, but between 1833 and 1837, as per address of Dumas. Mounting traces on the reverse, and the remnant of the white wax seal at the top left. A rare memento linking two of the towering figures of the19th century.Dumas, the distinguished French novelist of such historical classics as The Count of Monte Cristo, The Three Musketeers, and The Man in the Iron Mask, was of mixed race, and once when he was being insulted by a man because of his mixed blood, remarked: "My father was a mulatto, my grandfather was a Negro, and my great-grandfather a monkey. You see, Sir, my family starts where yours ends." Meyerbeer was Jewish and never gave up his faith, despite the slurs heaped on him by many, including Richard Wagner, whom he had gone out of his way to help. Perhaps Meyerbeer was once interested in adapting one of Dumas’s tales as an opera. (5757)
Autograph Letter Opera