Auction 80 Part 1 Jewish and Israeli History, Culture and Art
Jun 29, 2021
8 Ramban St, Jerusalem., Israel

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LOT 209:

Section of a Letter Handwritten and Signed by Moses Mendelssohn – Berlin, 1782 – The Final Lines of a Letter to His ...

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Section of a Letter Handwritten and Signed by Moses Mendelssohn – Berlin, 1782 – The Final Lines of a Letter to His friend, Writer and Politician August Hennings
A section of a letter handwritten by Moses Mendelssohn – seven lines, hand-signed by him. [Berlin, June 25, 1782]. German.
A piece of paper with the final lines of a long philosophical letter that was sent by the Jewish-German philosopher, one of the forefathers of Jewish Enlightenment, Moses Mendelssohn (1729-1786) to his friend, the Danish writer and politician, August Adolph Friedrich Hennings (1746-1826): " And it is as if I were suddenly thrown off the rail and given a good opportunity to end here. I will probably return to the subject another time, when a bright morning such as this will motivate me again to such exploration. Until then be well and loved. Yours, Moses Mendelssohn".
The name Henriette is impressed (a dry seal) on verso of the piece of paper, which was cut at the margins. This is possibly the seal of Mendelssohn's daughter, Henriette (1775-1831). A fragmented inscription alongside the seal "Berlin d…".
The complete letter, dealing with progress of mankind versus individual progress, was published in the Jubilee edition of the collected writings of Moses Mendelssohn, Gesammelte Schriften – Jubiläumsausgabe, edited by Alexander Altmann (Stuttgart and Bad Cannstatt, 1977. Volume 13, p. 66).
[1] f, 10.56 cm. Good-fair condition. A long tear in the center of the leaf. Open tears to margins (not affecting text).

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