Lettre autographe signée inédite adressée à Maximilien Luce

Autograph letter signed by Camille Pissarro, one page on a folded bifolium. A few tears along the horizontal and vertical fold lines, not affecting the text; small paper loss to the margin of the blank leaf.
Unpublished letter from Camille Pissarro, written in an especially graceful hand, addressed to his friend the painter Maximilien Luce.

The painter expresses his sorrow upon learning of the “dreadful misfortune” that had befallen Luce, who had just lost his two-year-old son Frédéric:

Paris
III rue Saint-Lazare            

                                                                                                                            3 sep. 95

My dear Luce,
 
We received your letter last night upon returning to the hotel, informing us of your dreadful misfortune.
We would very much have wished to shake your hand in such painful circumstances, but things are so poorly arranged that we are unable to do so.
We must leave today for Éragny so that Lucien can prepare for his final departure to London, which has been much delayed by his little one's illness—she has had scarlet fever.
As for me, I must stop by my ophthalmologist to show him my eye, which is troubling me.
Forgive us, my dear friend, and know that we share in your sorrow. If I can be of any help to you, I place myself entirely at your disposal.
Please convey our condolences to your wife. We send you both a warm handshake.
 

Your devoted friend,
C. Pissarro

Following the loss of his child, Luce and his wife joined the Pissarro family in Éragny, wherehe painted several portraits of Pissarro surrounded by his children—works now held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.