JEFFERSON ON BOOK COLLECTING. JEFFERSON, THOMAS. 1743-1826. Autograph Letter Signed ('Th. Jeffe...

JEFFERSON ON BOOK COLLECTING. JEFFERSON, THOMAS. 1743-1826. Autograph Letter Signed ('Th. Jefferson') to Debures Freres reconstructing his library, which he had sold at tremendous loss to the Library of Congress, 250 x 202, 1 p, ink on paper, bifolium, integral address panel to final leaf, remnants of seal, Monticello in Virginia, June 6, 1817, old folds, minor tears to margins, in custom cloth chemise and morocco backed slipcase. Provenance: J. Baart de la Faille (1795-1867), sold Theodor Bom, Amsterdam, November 9-13, 1868, lot 1078. JEFFERSON RECONSTRUCTS HIS LIBRARY AFTER REPLACING THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS WITH HIS OWN PERSONAL LIBRARY, AFTER THE BURNING OF WASHINGTON 1814. When the 3000-book Library of Congress was destroyed by the British in 1814, Jefferson immediately offered his own personal library to replace it, at whatever price Congress would agree to pay. In February 1815, some 6,487 volumes, still housed in the shelves which they occupied at Monticello, were delivered to Washington, for which Jefferson received $23,950. Some in Congress had argued vehemently against the purchase, such as Federalist Cyrus King who feared the books would spread his 'infidel philosophy' and were 'good, bad, and indifferent ... in languages which many can not read, and most ought not.' Beginning immediately, Jefferson began reconstructing his own library at Monticello. Since many of Jefferson's beloved books could only be obtained abroad he made use of friends traveling to Paris and Germany to place orders with foreign booksellers to provide the necessary volumes. Primary among those was the Paris firm Debure Freres, which would provide him with a number of shipments of books over the following 5 years. This letter is the first to connect Jefferson with the Debures directly, having received his first shipment he notes, 'I now take the liberty of considering this as having placed me in correspondence with you, and as authorising the addresses I shall annually have occasion to make to you for articles in the same line.' He proceeds to set forth the terms for fulfilling his commissions, based on an enclosed catalogue (no longer present), 'giving a preference in the order in which they are named, and curtailing the list from the bottom upwards to where it begins to exceed the sum remitted.' The Debures response is preserved at the Massachusetts Historical Society, accompanied by a detailed invoice, and they note, 'We were proud to learn that the books that Mr. Warden ordered from us last year were for you, and we were even more pleased, Sir, to know that you had been satisfied with them. We hope that you will be no less so with those of this year. We have taken the same care in their selection, and the necessary bindings have been done by the same bookbinder.' The present letter, originating one of the most important bookseller relationships in Jefferson's retirement, is one of the finest and most essential relating to his book collecting and his library in private hands. For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com For further information about this lot please visit the lot listing