Marvellians with deep pockets may be interested in the upcoming Sotheby’s auction, English Literature, History, Children’s Books, and Illustrations at New Bond St. (London), 14 July 2011, lot 24 in which is an autograph Marvell letter, deriving from the collection of Sir Weetman Dickinson Pearson, Bt., of Dunecht House, Aberdeenshire.
The letter was written to Sir Henry Thompson of Escrick on 26 June 1675. It details the latest news from court and parliament, including Scaramouche’s performances at Whitehall; the smashing of the king’s sundial (by Lord Rochester and his gang); the banishment from court of Shaftesbury, Cavendish, and Newport; and the appointment to the Privy Council of Giles Strangways. It touches on material addressed in Marvell’s letter to his nephew William Popple of the previous day and in the contemporaneous satire “The Statue at Charing Cross.”
The letter is unpublished and is estimated to sell for £10,000-£15,000. [Update: The letter was sold for £11,250.]
Timothy Raylor
Carleton College