- 107
Plath, Sylvia.
Estimate
2,500 - 3,500 GBP
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Description
- Illustrated typescript poem in the form of a hand-made "Get Well" card, first line "Oh, once upon a summertime", six stanzas, illustrated in ink, crayon and watercolour
one large 4to leaf (254 x 212mm.) folded twice to make four pages, signed with an inscription by the poet's mother Aurelia on the final page (All good wishes for a speedy | recovery! | Aurelia and her mother"), typescript logo on the same page "* | An | S.P." | card", preserved in folding blue cloth chemise and quarter blue morocco slipcase, [mid-1940s]
"Oh, once upon a summertime
To a hospital in 'towan'
There came a charming patient
Called Mrs. Ruth McGowan
The doctors and the nurses all
Thought that nothing was so pressing
As to discover things which
Would speed her convalescing..."
This illustrated get-well card was probably composed and illustrated by Sylvia for a friend of her mother Aurelia (it is possible that Aurelia means to say "Aurelia and her daughter" or "Sylvia and her mother" in the inscription). The poem is unrecorded in the list of juvenilia at the end of Plath's Collected Poems (edited by Ted Hughes, 1981).
"Oh, once upon a summertime
To a hospital in 'towan'
There came a charming patient
Called Mrs. Ruth McGowan
The doctors and the nurses all
Thought that nothing was so pressing
As to discover things which
Would speed her convalescing..."
This illustrated get-well card was probably composed and illustrated by Sylvia for a friend of her mother Aurelia (it is possible that Aurelia means to say "Aurelia and her daughter" or "Sylvia and her mother" in the inscription). The poem is unrecorded in the list of juvenilia at the end of Plath's Collected Poems (edited by Ted Hughes, 1981).
Provenance
Aurelia Plath, the poet's mother
Condition
Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, when appropriate.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.