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March 25, 1950

Dear Dr. Friedlander:

Will you allow me to write to you about the following, for the deeper my research the more confused I became, and truly believe you are the only one who has the answer.

A little while ago I received from Paris the catalogue of an exhibition entitled "Cent Portraits de Femmes", held at the Galeria Charpentier, about which you most probably heard.

In it was exhibited a portrait by DURER with the following description:

"Portrait de Katherine Furleger (signe et date 1497; grave par W. Hollar en 1646. Anc. Coll. Earl of Arundel, Cardinal Liechtenstein, Wym Ellis, Sir Charles Robinson.

Now, according to the books consulted I find two or perhaps even three similar portraits by Durer, namely:

a) one which is an oil on panels 23" by 16-3/4", and, according to the 1928 Nuremberg catalogue was in the von Sternberg Collection in Lutzschena.

b) tempera on canvas, 21-3/4" x 16-1/2", which was Leopold Goldschmidt's and then Heugel, unless there is a third one in the Heugel collection.

In the Sedelmeyer catalogue of 1914 there is one reproduced which was lent by Mr. Henri Heugel. This one supposedly has the pedigree indicated in the catalogue of the "Cent Portraits de Femmes", though it could be completed as follows:

Arundel, Liechtenstein, Mundler, Christie Sale, 1851, Wym Ellis 1876, Sir Charles Robinson.

It would have thus, if the Leopold Goldschmidt and the Henri Heugel one are the same, been purchased by Sedelmeyer, then sold to Leopold Goldschmidt, whence it went to Henri Heugel.

On the other hand, in the Nuremberg catalogue of 1928, the Arundel pedigree is being given to the von Sternberg painting.

Dr. Panofsky in his work which was recently published and you have probably seen it, claims that the von Sternberg one is a better painting than the Leopold Goldschmidt one, but the reproduction seems to be the one of the Goldschmidt-Heugel painting.

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