Lot 244

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Description:

Thomas Merton Extensive Archive with 2 ALS and 6 Inscriptions Signed in His Hand

An archive related to the Trappist monk, writer, and mystic (1915-1968) known for his best-selling autobiography The Seven Storey Mountain. The centerpiece of the archive is a spiral-bound scrapbook, containing an array of published material relating to the thoughts and teachings of Thomas Merton, comprised of an assortment of newsletters, photos, magazine and newspaper clippings, and a handful of handwritten letters and notes, eight of which are signed with his initials, “T. M.” Highlights include: 

Two Thomas Merton ALS. Both are one page, measuring 5" x 6.875", written on "From the Desk of Father Louis" stationery. Both are addressed to Sr. M. Gabriel. The first, postmarked January 31, 1968, reads in full: “Thanks—I appreciated the card! Yes—Abbot Burns was one of my scholastics. I am glad he got the votes. He is our best man. Pray for men. Best in Xt. TM.” The second, postmarked May 27, 1968, reads in part: “Many thanks for remembering my anniversary & the presents are much appreciated. I will remember you especially at Mass this morning.”

A Circular from Easter 1967. Includes a formerly affixed matte-finish 2.25 x 3.5 portrait of Merton in a half-length pose with his arms crossed; although the newsletter is dated to April 1967, there’s reason to believe that the photo depicts Merton from some time the year prior, given that he is shown wearing gloves in the image; his biographer Michael Mott only acknowledges Merton’s gloves once in his biography The Seven Mountains of Thomas Merton, noting that Merton wore dermal gloves in 1966 for a skin condition. The reverse of the photo bears a stamped signature.

Last Message in a Newsletter. Dated Fall 1968, written from Kentucky’s Abbey of Gethsemani, contains Merton’s last message to his followers, which bears a facsimile of his stamped autograph below. Written mere months before his fateful trip to Asia, it reads in part: “I have been asked to attend two meetings in Asia, one of them a meeting of the Abbots of Catholic monastic Orders in that area, the other an interfaith meeting with representatives of Asian religions. I will also be spending some time in at least two Asian monasteries of our Order, to help out there, and will doubtless be invited to others…I feel it a duty to respond." Various pages are annotated and marked in another hand, with several additional articles and clippings laid loose at the back of the scrapbook.

The six other instances of Merton’s signed initials and handwriting can be found at the top of newsletters from the “Abbey of Gethsemani,” which are dated between February and December 1967. One has a facsimile signature with a handwritten postscript by Merton: "P. S. Thanks for your note & enclosures!"

Also included with the spiral binder scrapbook are numerous books, calendars, postcards, a ceramic plate, and other items relating to Merton. The calendars date from 1957 through 1972 and feature images of the Abbey. There are a total of 83 blank postcards, with images of the Scriptorium, a Palm Sunday Procession, the Abbey, and the Letourneau Organ. There is a poster and booklet advertising the PBS Premiere of a biographical film on Merton, which aired on June 5, 1984. Also present is a VHS tape entitled "Life at the Abbey of Gethsemani: Time in the Garden." The three books in the archive are "God is my life: The Story of Our Lady Gethsemani" with an introduction by Merton; "Gethsemani: A Life of Praise" with text by Merton; and "Gethsemani Magnificat", a Centenary of Gethsemani Abbey. With additional essays on Thomas Merton. Varying degrees of toning, wear, and soiling to newsletters and books. Some flattened mail folds. Darker toning to newspaper clippings. From the collection of Ron Hoskins, assassinologist.

On December 10, 1968, Merton was found dead shortly after giving a talk at a Red Cross retreat center named Sawang Kaniwat in Samut Prakan, a province near Bangkok, Thailand. His body was located in his cottage, supine on the floor with a short-circuited Hitachi floor fan lying across his body, and a grievous wound on the back of his head. Given that no autopsy was performed, the head wound, ‘which had bled considerably,’ was never officially deemed a factor in Merton’s death, which, according to his associate, Jean Leclercq, was ostensibly ‘due in part to heart failure, in part to an electric shock.’ Merton’s body was flown back to the United States on board a U.S. military aircraft returning from Vietnam, and he was buried at the Gethsemani Abbey. Sold $3750 in Jan. 2020 RR Auction.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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