Details
HOFFMANN, Ernst Theodor Amadeus (1776-1822). Autograph letter signed ('Hff') to [his publisher Georg Andreas Reimer], Berlin, 24 June 1818, one page, 8vo, (seal tear to upper right margin, without loss of text), integral address panel (recipient's name erased), papered seal. Provenance: Eugen Mecklenburg the elder (1819-1873); Otto Braun (1897-1918); Liepmannsohn auction catalogue 41; Stargardt, 2/3 December 1975, lot 182.
An orotund reminder of his need for a loan, which he awaits, as the Jews await the Messiah -- its late arrival has already made him miss a promised payment, to his chagrin: 'Wie das Volk das unsern Herrn erschlug, auf den verheißenen Meßias, warte ich auf die Erfüllung Ihres gütigen Versprechens mir heute 75rh zu senden. Ich hatte versprochen Mittags zu zahlen und habe nun wieder nicht Wort halten können, welches mich nicht wenig drückt und ängstet'.
After a traumatic experience of the Napoleonic Wars (which included being in Dresden during the Battle of the Nations), Hoffmann had succeeded in returning to Berlin and reclaiming a position at the Kammergericht, whilst at same time flinging himself into a period of furious literary productivity. By the end of the decade, however, alcohol abuse, syphilis and a series of legal disputes had worn him down.
An orotund reminder of his need for a loan, which he awaits, as the Jews await the Messiah -- its late arrival has already made him miss a promised payment, to his chagrin: 'Wie das Volk das unsern Herrn erschlug, auf den verheißenen Meßias, warte ich auf die Erfüllung Ihres gütigen Versprechens mir heute 75rh zu senden. Ich hatte versprochen Mittags zu zahlen und habe nun wieder nicht Wort halten können, welches mich nicht wenig drückt und ängstet'.
After a traumatic experience of the Napoleonic Wars (which included being in Dresden during the Battle of the Nations), Hoffmann had succeeded in returning to Berlin and reclaiming a position at the Kammergericht, whilst at same time flinging himself into a period of furious literary productivity. By the end of the decade, however, alcohol abuse, syphilis and a series of legal disputes had worn him down.
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