Pablo Casals (1876-1973). Collection of 36 letters, 18 picture postcards and 4 telegrams,

all signed, to Monsieur et Madame (Arnold et Juliette) Van Buuren or only to Madame Van Buuren and in French (1x in English), letters dated 1903-1906 and 1928-1935 and 25x with post-paid and stamped envelopes, address (also on the picture postcards, dated 1903-1906) Weesperzijde 106 or Grensstraat 14, Amsterdam, telegrams dated 1904-1906.

The recipients of the letters, being Amsterdam Jews, were deported during the Second World War and died on 23 April 1943 at Sobibor, of their children Paul and Hedda, mentioned in several letters, the place and date of death is unknown. Interesting and large collection of personal original letters from the famous cellist Pablo Casals (actually Pau Casals i Defilló) to Julliete Van Buuren-Polak (1874-1943) and Arnold van Buuren (1873-1943). The letters from the first period were sent from Paris (incl. several on blue stationery with address 20 Villa Molitor), New York, The Hague, Berlin, London, Brussels, Aachen, Monte Carlo and Amsterdam, often on hotel stationery. The earliest letter (Paris, 15 December 1903) talks about a photo sent by Casals as promised (“aussi il me plait de vous l’offrir car elle est intime”); as an aside, there are three small photos of Casals in this collection. Another letter, dated 27 January 1904, discusses the birth of son Paul van Buuren on 1 January 1904. Yet another, dated 27 July 1905 discusses daughter Hedda van Buuren, born on 26 July 1905. In the subsequent letters, Casals very often refers to the children. The bond between Casals and the Van Buurens is clearly very close, as seen for example by his announcement in a letter (dated Brussels, 20 December 1906) of his vist: “Chers Arnold et Juliette, c’est avec un coeur tremblant de joie que je viens vous annoncez mon arrivée à Amsterdam demain à 5 heures du soir, j’espère que vous avoir cette lettre un peu avant.” The letters from the later period are almost all sent from Barcelona, 440 Avenida Alfonso XIII (or 440 Diagonal), partly on stationery Orquestra Pau Casals Barcelona. The picture postcards were sent from Paris, Groningen, Brussels, Marseille, Baden-Baden, Venice, San Sebastian, Brescia, and all carry a warm and his name (e.g. “love from Pablo” or “votre Pablo”).