Leducq Maison de Ventes aux enchères
67
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Alexandre DUMAS and Adah MENKEN.
See original version (French)
67
-
Alexandre DUMAS and Adah MENKEN.
See original version (French)
Estimate €200 - €250
Voluntary lot
Description
Alexandre DUMAS and Adah MENKEN. Set of 5 visiting-card-sized photographs. [1867].
- Liebert photograph: Dumas seated in an armchair, holding a book; Adah Menken standing behind him, her arms around him. 2 prints (one damaged).
- Photograph by Liebert. Dumas seated, Adah Menken tenderly clasped against him.
- Photograph by Liebert. Dumas standing, Adah Menken wrapped in a large shawl and held close to him.
- Photograph by Reutlinger. Adah Menken in *Les Pirates de la Savane*.
The worldwide fame of the American horsewoman Adah Menken (1835–1868, nicknamed ‘Dada Menken’ by the satirical newspaper *La Lune*) was on a par with that of a modern-day Madonna. From 1864 onwards, she undertook several tours of Europe. A woman of culture, she wrote poems and wished to be recognised as a poet—her sole passion. Whilst enjoying increasing success on stage, she met the literary elite of her time and charmed Alexandre Dumas. Aware of the extraordinary publicity that the publication of photographs showing her with the famous writer would bring her, she persuaded him to take a series of pictures in which they were depicted together in poses of varying degrees of intimacy.
The scandal was immense. Eventually, Dumas took Liébert to court, won the case, and the photographs were returned to him. George Sand, relieved for her great friend, wrote to him: ‘How annoyed you must have been by all this business with the photographs! Well, that’s the way it is! Age brings with it a sad consequence of the bohemian life. What a pity!’
Another writer was less forgiving: Verlaine, whom this scandal inspired to pen the following quatrain:
Uncle Tom, with Miss Ada
It’s a sight one dreams of…
Ada may stay on her horse,
But does Tom ride on and on without rest?
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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