Detail View: Rylands Collection: Letter from Queen Elisabeth of Romania to Moses Gaster

Image Number: 
R148858_letter.pdf
Reference Number: 
R148858
Link to Catalogue: 
Image Title: 
Letter from Queen Elisabeth of Romania to Moses Gaster
Parent Work Title: 
Rumanian bird and beast stories: rendered into English
Creator: 
Sylva, Carmen
Creator Role: 
Author
Date Created: 
1916
Publication Details: 
London: Published for the Folk-Lore Society by Sidgwick & Jackson, Ltd
Page/Sheet: 
Inserted in envelope attached to inside front cover
Image Sequence Number: 
005
Image Sequence Total: 
x
Description: 
In 1915 Gaster published his work Romanian Bird and Beast Stories (381pp), consisting of a lengthy study in which he presents his views on folklore, followed by his translations of 119 numbered Romanian stories about animals, and three appendices (animal charms, stories from Ahikar, and animal stories from the Hebrew Alphabet of Ben Sira). Gaster found the stories in the published works of several Romanian folklorists, most notably (around two thirds of the stories) from two publications by Simion Florea Marian (1883 and 1903). R148858 is Gaster's own interleaved copy. It shows that he continued to gather and translate animal stories until shortly before his death. The volume contains handwritten notes (mostly references to what Gaster perceived as 'parallels' in various publications), a copy of a letter from Queen Elisabeth of Romania, news paper cuttings with reviews of the book, and inserted leaves with handwritten and typed stories. Below his translation of a story, Gaster usually mentions where he found it (not all references are correct) and when he translated it. The three pages are tucked into an envelope at the front of the book and comprises a typed copy of letter in German from Queen Elisabeth of Romania (also known by her pen name, Carmen Sylva) to Moses Gaster, Bucharest 28 January 1916. The pages are typed in blue ink. Gaster's book was dedicated to her, and it seems that he send her a copy of it. In this letter she expresses her appreciation for the work, and mentions that she started something similar, which she sends to him (the documents she has sent him have not yet been located).
Language Code: 
ger
Subject: 
Folk-lore, Romanian
Category of Material: 
Printed
Sub-Category: 
Correspondence
Medium: 
Ink
Support: 
Paper
Creation Site: 
Romania: Bucharest
Current Repository: 
The University of Manchester Library, U.K.
Provenance: 
Gaster, Moses, 1856-1939, former owner
Rights Holder - Image: 
The University of Manchester Library
Rights holder - Work: 
The University of Manchester Library
References: 
Haralambakis, M. 'A Survey of the Gaster Collection in the John Rylands Library', Bulletin of the John Rylands Library 89:2 (2013): 107–30. Florea, V. Dr. M. Gaster: Reconstituiri biobibliografice: Omul şi Opera (Cluj-Napoca: Editura Fundatiei pentru Studii Europene, 2008), 127–54.
Date Captured (yyyy-mm-dd): 
2013-02-13
Image Creation Technique: 
Digital capture by Heritage Imaging, The University of Manchester Library
Date Image Added (yyyy-mm): 
2013-05
Metadata Language: 
eng-GB