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RONALD FREYBERGER
4445 POST ROAD
NEW YORK, N.Y. 10471

January 22, 1972

Mr. Germain Seligman
5 East 57 Street
New York, N.Y. 10022

Dear Mr. Seligman,

It was so nice to have seen you at your gallery two weeks ago. Since then I have had the opportunity to look at books in my own library for a change and I came across a reference in which you may be interested if you do not already know about it.

I mean the so-called self-portrait of Mlle. Constance Mayer which was included as lot number 537 in the big Lelong sale of 1903. It is illustrated in the catalogue and according to a contemporary annotation in my copy of this catalogue it went to Gustave Mühlbacher for 11,200 francs. My Mühlbacher catalogue of May 13-15, 1907 has the same painting (unillustrated) as lot number 40, and at this time it evidently was bought by someone called Féral for 5500 francs.

I was struck by the psyché, or cheval glass, before which Mlle. Mayer stands in the painting. It either closely resembles or is identical to the cheval glass in the drawing by Prud'hon which once passed through your hands and a photograph of which you showed me on a couple of occasions a year or two ago. I am sure that you can well imagine the importance to the history of the decorative arts, of the drawing and of the painting if indeed the objects they represent are one and the same. 

I would be very interested in knowing if my suspicion is correct, and I would be grateful if you were to find it possible to inform me of this, assuming, of course, that your library contains the Lelong catalogue. If it does not, I could easily bring my copy down one day in order to make the comparison. 

I hope that Mrs. Seligman is feeling better and I wish you would again convey to her my best wishes. I had meant to write to her a long time ago, but I myself have been down with the flu these last two weeks which explains why I have had a chance to look at my auction catalogues and why other aspects of my life have become somewhat disorganized.

I hope that before long, however, it might be possible for us to get together and chat about my proposed trip to Paris in the Spring. I am sure that you and Mrs. Seligman can tell me much that is useful that I might not otherwise know about. 

With best regards and all good wishes, I remain

Yours sincerely, 

Ronald Freyberger