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                                                 10

                                 June 8th. 1955

Dear Germain:

The letter about the Vermeer has finally come and I am enclosing two of the prints on hand and will send one showing the frame as soon as it will be ready.

You will also find the invoice and an extra copy of same, should the former not be satisfactory. You will see that it is dated June 6th the day following the date of your letter. The original has been copied too.

Feeling that had you had the bibliography with you, you might have done similarly, I have commenced the invoice with the poetic Thuro-Burger description. In addition to its verbal appeal it is chronologically reasonable too... but done because both of the descriptions of de Vries-Huyghe pp.40 and X are either uncomplimentary or completely erroneous as to colors. Furthermore it would have been necessary to very apparently take extracts from the de Vries-Huyghe book whereas this way we completely side-step the uncomplimentary remarks and the confusion in the dimensions. No men buying such a painting would want the first references in the invoice to read "Les traits manquant de grace, les your sont tres [[?]] et treslarges,la bouche pincée. [[?]] sortilege enchanteur fait defaut.. [[?]] to have the colors indicated incorrectly especially when immediately there under a note is printed [[?]] mediocre variants de ce tableau a circule sur le marche d'art".

The accurate dimensions as just re-taken are (by Jack) :
            - Sight of frame : 16-7/8" x 15"
            - Canvas 17-1/2" x 15-3/4"
            - Outside of frame 26-3/4" x 25"

Mr. Solomon : The absence of Ary Leblond's name from the invoice is due to the fact that it did not appear in the catalogue and I therefore had every reason to believe you did not want it mentioned.

As it would seem something of an anti-climax to mention a certificate after the long list of books in which the painting is mentioned Dr. Valentiner's letter is not referred to.

Transcription Notes:
Per SI instructions, please left justify and do not indicate [[underlined]], [[signature]], [[handwritten]], etc., or use hard returns within paragraphs.