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[Beethoven] Original invitation card to Beethoven's funeral. Einladung zu Ludwig van Beethoven's Leichenbegangnis, welches am 29. Marz um 3 Uhr Nachmittags statt finden wird. Vienna, printed by Anton Strauss, distributed in Tobias' Haslinger's music shop, 1827. Printed on heavy paper and hand cut. Single sheet black-bordered invitation to Beethoven's funeral, the text composed by Beethoven's life-long friend Stephan von Breuning.
German reads: Man versammelt sich in der Wohnung des Verstorbenen im Schwarzspanier-Hause Nr. 200, / am Glacis vor dem Schottenthore. / Der Zug begibt sich von da nach der Dreyfaltigkeits=Kirche / bey den P. P. Minoriten in der Alsergasse. // Die musikalische Welt erlitt den unersetzlichen Verlust des berühmten Tondichters am 26. Marz 1827 Abends gegen 6 Uhr. / Beethoven starb an den Folgen der Wassersucht, im 56. Jahre seines Alters, / nach empfangenen heil. Sacramenten.
English translation: The Meeting of Mourners will take place at the residence of the deceased, in the Schwarzspanier House, No. 200, at the Glacis before the Schotten Gate. The cortege will proceed from there to the Trinity Church of the Minorites in Alser Street. / The irretrievable loss to the musical world of the celebrated tone-master took place on the 26th March, 1827, at 6 p.m. Beethoven died in consequence of dropsy, in the 56th year of his age, after having received the Holy Sacrament. / The day of obsequies will be made known by L. van Beethoven's Worshippers and Friends."]
Tobias Haslinger was the publisher of some of Beethoven's last works (Opp.136-138, including the Overture, Leonora no.1), and was one of the organizers of the notorious auction of the great composer's manuscripts after his death.
Provenance: From the Noe von Archenegg family in Austria. This invitation card was passed down through the Noe von Archenegg, to Adolf Carl Noe (from his grandfather and father, respectively), the famous paleobiologist, to his daughter Mary Helen Von Noe and her husband Robert S. Mulliken and passed down though the family to its current owner, the consignor.
On p74 in Mulliken's biography, "Life of A Scientist", Springer-Verlag, 1989, he describes finding this invitation card in his wife's family belongings in their house in Graz, Austria.
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