Two Unpublished Letters by John Constable at the Huntington Library

Abstract

In the Huntington Library (and now deposited in the Manuscripts Department) are two unpublished letters of John Constable which merit attention because they reinforce his reputation for generosity, to younger artists especially, and exemplify the nature of his relationships with other prominent figures in the nineteenth-century art world. Both letters were attached to a single sheet inserted between the (soft) cover and endpapers of a proof copy of Various Subjects of Landscape Characteristic of English Scenery from Pictures Painted by John Constable, R.A. The title page adds Engraved by David Lucas/Published by Mr. Constable, 35 Charlotte Street, Fitzroy Square./Sold by Colnaghi, Dominic Colnaghi, and Co. Pall Mall East. /1830. Price: one pound, eleven shillings, six pence. The book was given to the Huntington Library by Dr. George Martyn in 1943. The curators have no more information about its provenance. The first letter accompanied a presentation copy which Constable sent to the art critic Allan Cunningham, so it is possible that the book in the Huntington collection is the book originally given to Cunningham. This letter, addressed to Allan Cunningham, Esq., was written on 83/4 by 73/8 in. buff-color lightweight paper, watermarked Booth 1828. It was originally folded in half, then folded in thirds and sealed. The wax impression is no longer legible. The letter is not dated but was probably written shortly after the publication of the Constable-Lucas mezzotints in 1830. It reads as follows: