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245
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245. A group of letters, papers and printed ephemera assembl…
245
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245. A group of letters, papers and printed ephemera assembl…
Estimate €8,000 - €10,000
Voluntary lot
Description
245. A group of letters, papers and printed ephemera assembled in Antibes following the death of Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna
Dating from 1929 onwards, including newspaper cuttings from France, Germany, the Balkans and England relating to the USSR and the Russian émigré community; correspondence between Madame Henry Michèle and Jean Coquelin; a brochure from a psychiatric institution; records concerning heirs and successors, including various princes and princesses; invitations to liturgies and memorial services; Easter greetings and salutations; financial accounts and transactions; notes recording correspondence; credits in favour of Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna; and letters sent from Italy, retaining contemporary postal stamps and markings.
Provenance
Private Collection, France
Following the death of Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich in 1929, Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna withdrew from the more public role she had occupied within the Russian émigré community and settled in Cap d'Antibes on the French Riviera. There, she lived a comparatively quiet and secluded life, surrounded by a small circle of relatives, friends, and fellow Russian exiles. Although she remained respected among monarchist and émigré circles as the widow of the Grand Duke, she largely avoided political involvement in her final years. Cap d'Antibes had become home to a number of prominent Russian émigrés, offering both a mild climate and a degree of privacy. Anastasia devoted herself to her religious life and personal correspondence, maintaining connections with members of the dispersed Russian aristocracy until her death on 15 November 1935. She was later buried beside her husband in the crypt of the Russian Orthodox Church of Saint Michael the Archangel in Cannes, where their graves remain an important site of remembrance for descendants of the Russian émigration.
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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