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RS:KP

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January 19th, 1935.

My dear Mr. Hearst:

I am sending you herewith the photograph of a marble sculpture which I think might interest you, as it is a piece of very unusual beauty and capital importance.

It is a figure of St. Barbara, and is probably an idealized portrait of Queen Catherine de Medici, the wife of Henri II, by the great sculptor of the Renaissance, Germain PILON.

This statue is recorded in Mr. Babelon's book on Germain Pilon, and Louis Reau of the Louvre has made a very extensive study of this statue, which I would be glad to send you in case you are interested.

Works by Germain Pilon are extremely rare, the best known being 

The Three Graces in the Louvre
The Three Fates in Cluny
The Four wood figures formerly supporting the Shrine of St. Genevieve and now in the Louvre

The photograph in no way does justice to the statue which is marble, and which is 5' 10-1/2" high. I know of no museum, outside the Louvre or Cluny, which has a piece of this importance, and I believe not of that epoch; nothing of this importance has been offered for sale since that very beautiful statue which you purchased from us some ten years ago. Of course, no American museum has anything of this type or quality.

I am happy to say that I have good news of you once in a while, and with my best regards,

Yours sincerely,

(Rene Seligmann)

William Randolph Hearst, Esq.,
La Cuesta Encantada,
San Simeon, Calif.