No. 11 of 10318
Sender Date Recipient
Bertel Thorvaldsen [+]

Sender’s Location

København

Information on sender

Brevet er forsynet med sort laksegl. Ovalt signetaftryk med bogstaverne AK, to korslagte palmegrene for neden og en palmette for oven. Signetet har formodentlig tilhørt Sophie Amalie Kurthals’ far, Asman Kurtzhals, og brevet kunne derfor være skrevet hos denne.

2.[??].1794 [+]

Dating based on

Måneden lader sig ikke tyde, men dagen er sikkert den 2. og året er sikkert 1794. Muligvis er der, jf. kommentaren til “nok praket”, tale om november, men da det ikke kan afgøres med absolut sikkerhed er dateringen her angivet som 2.[??].1794.

Sophie Amalie Kurtzhals [+]

Recipient’s Location

Uvist hvor, antagelig ikke langt fra København

Information on recipient

Udskrift: Til Iomfru / Sophie A Kurtzhals

Abstract

Thorvaldsen apologizes to Kurtzhals because he did not have the time to bid her farewell before she left. He mentions that he may come to see her. It is not known where she went, presumably somewhere in the vicinity of Copenhagen.

See Original [Translation]

Høystærede Venende

Jeg Beder skyldig om forladelse at ieg kom for sildig at Bede dem og deres Venende farvel, men Ieg haaber at dig eler Iomfru Lund tar mig det ikke fortrydelig op da Ieg kom strax da de var bote da Ieg ikke hafde vendet at de hafde Reyste bordt saa snart! men deres moder har talt om at Reyste der ud til dem saa Reyste Ieg med for en fiæl skyl da Ieg kan have den fornøelse at tale med dem bædre en Ieg kan have med at skrive som de ser Ieg beder hilsem Iomfru Lund fra deres B. Thorvaldsen

Kiøbenhanv d 2de nok Praket 1794

General Comment

Concerning the relationship between Thorvaldsen and his early love Sophie Amalie Kurtzhals, see her biography.
Only one more letter is known to exist from Thorvaldsen to Kurtzhals: Thorvaldsen’s watercolour CX11 [Dep.19] with New Year’s greetings 1.1.1794. In the Archive there are also two letters from Kurtzhals’ family. One is a cordial letter of 26.11.1824 from Kurtzhals’ brother, Niels Schønberg Kurtzhals, who sends greetings from “my brother-in-law and sister”, probably Sophie Amalie and her husband. The other letter of 8.5.1841 is from the brother’s widow, Cathrine Elisabeth Kurtzhals. These letters show that Thorvaldsen had maintained friendly relations with the family.

Archival Reference
m28A I, nr. 1
Document Type
Document, autograph
Thiele
Ikke gengivet hos Thiele.
Other references

  • Louis Bobé: Thorvaldsen i Kærlighedens Aldre, København 1938, p. 24-25, 26, 27.
  • Dyveke Helsted: ‘Fra Thorvaldsens ungdomstid’, in: Meddelelser fra Thorvaldsens Museum 1970, p. 17-28.
  • Stig Miss: ‘Thorvaldsen privat’, in: 1796, København som kulturby, p. 92-95.
Subjects
On Familiar Terms with Thorvaldsen · Thorvaldsen's Women · Thorvaldsen's Unwillingness to Write · Friends of Thorvaldsen's Youth
Works
Last updated 06.08.2021 Print