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Auction: 314 - Numismatic Collector's Series Sale
Lot: 1116

Paderewski, Ignacy Jan Polish pianist, composer and patriot (1860-1941); already known for his playing and compositions, he took on a new role in the Polish National Committee during World War I, and was instrumental in achieving recognition of Poland as a sovereign nation in the Treaty of Versailles; Prime Minister of the Second Polish Republic. Intriguing Typewritten Letter Signed "I.J. Paderewski" in Polish, as representative of the Polish National Committee, 1 page, 4to, on his official imprinted stationery, New York, August 10, 1918. He writes to J Karasiewicz of Fulton, NY, about appointing Polish Americans to spread knowledge and appreciation of the homeland´s plight among those in the United States and to issue a call for prayer. He also discusses the Regency Council, which governed occupied Poland, but believes their instructions are "too convenient for German policy," and warns that in the US, otherwise patriotic people can "be encouraged to disloyalty and even deceit with total impunity." Worthy of a fuller translation than we have been able to provide in time for this auction! Foxed, toned, VG. By December, Paderewski was back in Europe, and a speech he gave in the still-occupied city of Poznan helped ignite the Greater Poland Uprising, which secured the nation´s interwar boundaries.

Estimate
$500 to $750