Gérard de Nerval was interned on rue Picpus after his first bout of madness. 1841.

Gérard de NERVAL (1808.1855)

Autographed letter signed to Amédée Rome, at the Ministry of the Interior.

One page in-8°. Autograph address and postal cancellations.

[Paris] March 5 [1841]

"I am at number 6 rue Picpus (...) a little sick but I will be out in five to six days."

Interned on rue Picpus, a few days after his first major hallucination crisis, Nerval, exalted and paranoid, sought the help of Amédée Rome.

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"My dear Romme [sic], would you be so kind as to personally deliver the enclosed letter to Mr. Leclerc, secretary to the Minister of the Interior, or to give it to a boy to deliver to him? If he is not there and is not expected to come today, give it to Mr. Mallac and ask him to open it. I am counting on you; it is very important. Goodbye, see you soon. Gérard."

Write to me immediately afterward if you have delivered the letter and what you were told. I am at 6 rue Picpus, at Madame de St. Marcel's, a little unwell, but I will be out in five or six days. Don't say anything about what I write. See you soon. You will have received this letter around noon. Write to me about what has happened. This March 5th, at 10:00 PM.

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At the beginning of 1841, while wandering the streets of Paris at night with his friend, the painter Paul Chenavard, Nerval suffered his first bout of madness. Irresolute and lost, he told his friend of his sudden desire to go to the Orient. Chenavard, paying no attention, suddenly discovered the poet " undressing, scattering his clothes to the right and left. " Nerval was admitted to the rue de Picpus, where he remained until March 16, before being transferred to Dr. Esprit Blanche's clinic in Montmartre until the end of November 1841. In the letter Nerval mentions, he reflects on all the intrigues, good or bad, that he perceived around him ( Correspondance Nerval , page 1371).

Bibliography:

Jean Richer. Nerval through the eyes of witnesses in his life. Paris, Minard. 1970. pp. 141-146

Nerval. Correspondence. Page 1371

. Nerval album. Pleiade. pp. 111-117

Gérard de Nerval. Gérard Cogez. Gallimard. 2010

Provenance:
. Sale Paris, Sotheby's, November 26, 2013, lot 40.