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New York 22, New York

November 10, 1959

Dear Mr. Watson:

How very kind of you to have written me at such length and do let me thank you for your letter of October 27th.

From the indication you give me that there is but one sculpture by LEMOYNE, namely a bust representing "Madame dePompadour" at Waddeson, nullifies my hope of locating there the marble statuette I have in mind.  The one I am referring to is a marble statuette which in our inventory was described as being signed "Lamoyne" and dated "1744". The latter date,I gather from further research, must have been, evidently, a misprint.

It is namely the statuette of 1755 which went to Baron Edmond de Rothschild as stated in Louis Réau "Les Lemoyne" Paris 1927, and where it is reproduced.  On page 104 of the catalogue raisonné you will find it under #20, "La Baigneuse Debout ou Flore"; and you will notice that it is also reproduced in Lady Dilke's "French Architects and Sculptors", page 104.

Though Réau does not mention the 1888 exhibition, there is not doubt in my mind that it is the one exhibited under #79, "Statuette, Madame de Pompadour en costume de Nymphe", the same one which was also exhibited in 1865 and most probably also in the 1883 exhibition.  Strangely enough, however, in connection with this last exhibition (1883), we only find here in the different libraries in New York but the part referring to paintings though, from reviews of the period as well as according to Stanislas Lami, sculptures were also shown. 

My hope in writing you earlier in this respect, was that we could have had the enjoyment of admiring this lovely statuette at Waddesdon.  However, if it did not gotto Baron James in England, it must have then gone to Baron Maurice in Switzerland, and probably inherited by the latter's son.

You wrote that I might be confusing this Lamoyne statuette with PIGALLE's "Allegorical Figure of L'Amitié".  With the above I assume I have dismissed the thought.  I remember this Pigalle very well for it was shown anew in the Orangerie, Summer 1950 in "Louis XV et Rocaille" under #53.  You mentioned that it also stemmed from the  Wallace-Bagatelle Collection,and I do not doubt of course that you are right.  However, I do not believe that it was part of the group purchased by my father - I do not find any indication in the inventory that could be interpreted as such; nor