An annotated copy of the manuscript of "Du cote de chez Swan", by Marcel Proust.
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CHRISTOPHE ARCHAMBAULT / AFP
Thanks to a call for donations from individuals, the National Library of France was able to acquire a rare copy of a novel by Marcel Proust, on which the author had signed an exceptionally long and precious dedication, for 350,000 euros.
The appeal was launched in November, and highlighted the possibility of income tax reductions, with a final 1,751 donors aged "from 19 to 98 years", from "all regions of France but also from France. 'foreign,' the institution said in a press release.
The average donation was 131 euros, with a dozen major donors all the same.
The acquired book is an edition on Dutch paper of
Du
cote de
chez Swann
, the first part of the cycle
In Search of Lost Time
, dedicated to a friend, Marie Scheikévitch.
The latter had told that one day in 1915 when Proust had confided in her his discouragement, she had declared herself impatient to know the fate of her characters.
Saying to him: "Lend me your copy and I will summarize the rest for you", he had written in pen, on eight pages, the plot of the two following volumes.
Fans of Proust will soon be able to read this dedication.
It "will be digitized and its content freely accessible on Gallica, the digital library of the BnF, while waiting to be presented to the public during the exhibition that the Library will devote to Marcel Proust in the fall of 2022", explained the Library. .
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