DICKENS, CHARLES A locket containing the hair and a miniature portrait of Charles Dickens with a letter of provenance from his granddaughter Dorothy . A rare personal artifact from the Dickens family, with letters of provenance and an auction history. The locket of yellow gold (at least 14 karat), the covers with the applied monograms of Charles Dickens to one side and Mary Dickens to the other, 2 inches by 1 inch (5 x 3.5 cm). The interior with a hand-tinted portrait of an older Dickens trimmed from a late 1860s carte-de-visite opposite a rounded strand of Dickens' hair set within a glazed bezel above which is engraved "9th June 1870" (the date of Dickens' death). The locket and letters housed in an early 20th century fitted book-form brown morocco slipcase, the spine tooled and lettered "Dickens Locket". The case contains an autograph letter and certification from Dickens' granddaughter, Dorothy Dickens. The certification reads "this locket containing the portrait & hair of the late Charles Dickens my grandfather, is absolutely genuine. It was given to his daughter Mamie from which it descended to me..." This certification is accompanied by an autograph letter to Puttick and Simpson (Auctioneers) dated 25 August 1903 in which Dorothy Dickens reiterates the provenance for the "gold locket you have sold on my behalf." The certification with a split at fold, the letters re-attached at a later date, the case rubbed, the locket and contents fine. Listed in a July 1903 issue of The Athenaeum is an advertisement for Puttick & Simpson's July 17 auction which is to contain a "Locket and hair of Charles Dickens", most certainly the present locket, as the letter from Dorothy Dickens regarding her recent sale is dated from one month later. The locket was later owned by Frederick Ives Carpenter (1861-1925), the bibliophile, collector and former University of Chicago professor of English literature, and has descended in his family. Authentic items from Dickens' family are scarce. (See The Athenaeum, July to December 1903, London: John Francis, 1903, p. 46.) C
DICKENS, CHARLES A locket containing the hair and a miniature portrait of Charles Dickens with a letter of provenance from his granddaughter Dorothy . A rare personal artifact from the Dickens family, with letters of provenance and an auction history. The locket of yellow gold (at least 14 karat), the covers with the applied monograms of Charles Dickens to one side and Mary Dickens to the other, 2 inches by 1 inch (5 x 3.5 cm). The interior with a hand-tinted portrait of an older Dickens trimmed from a late 1860s carte-de-visite opposite a rounded strand of Dickens' hair set within a glazed bezel above which is engraved "9th June 1870" (the date of Dickens' death). The locket and letters housed in an early 20th century fitted book-form brown morocco slipcase, the spine tooled and lettered "Dickens Locket". The case contains an autograph letter and certification from Dickens' granddaughter, Dorothy Dickens. The certification reads "this locket containing the portrait & hair of the late Charles Dickens my grandfather, is absolutely genuine. It was given to his daughter Mamie from which it descended to me..." This certification is accompanied by an autograph letter to Puttick and Simpson (Auctioneers) dated 25 August 1903 in which Dorothy Dickens reiterates the provenance for the "gold locket you have sold on my behalf." The certification with a split at fold, the letters re-attached at a later date, the case rubbed, the locket and contents fine. Listed in a July 1903 issue of The Athenaeum is an advertisement for Puttick & Simpson's July 17 auction which is to contain a "Locket and hair of Charles Dickens", most certainly the present locket, as the letter from Dorothy Dickens regarding her recent sale is dated from one month later. The locket was later owned by Frederick Ives Carpenter (1861-1925), the bibliophile, collector and former University of Chicago professor of English literature, and has descended in his family. Authentic items from Dickens' family are scarce. (See The Athenaeum, July to December 1903, London: John Francis, 1903, p. 46.) C
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.jpg "Source: Christie's")
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
