tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2239062544101975016.post839958694070026544..comments2024-03-28T14:05:25.134-07:00Comments on Sacnoth's Scriptorium: Tolkien's Shopping List (and a new poem)John D. Rateliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324926298336489295noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2239062544101975016.post-66523817467657452202014-11-10T13:12:32.715-08:002014-11-10T13:12:32.715-08:00I requested more information from the auction hous...I requested more information from the auction house, with no reply. John Garth reported the same experience. And now, the lot has been removed from sale. Apparently, the concerns over authenticity are legitimate ones. Looking at high resolution scans, I have to say I'm not convinced the handwriting is authentic, though I'm not an expert. John Garth raised questions about the content as well as the handwriting. A very interesting situation!Jason Fisherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05809154870762268253noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2239062544101975016.post-36162591025851911122014-11-10T10:03:31.240-08:002014-11-10T10:03:31.240-08:00Dear Ian and Gabriele: no, Ian's brief post fo...Dear Ian and Gabriele: no, Ian's brief post followed up by Gabriele's more detailed one were the first I'd heard that this is a concern.<br /><br />I'm reluctant to condemn a piece I haven't seen personally (just via the small image posted online). I assume that a reputable auction house like Bloomsbury takes pains to authenticate items before offering them for sale, and I note that in this case they don't use a circumlocution like "attributed to" or "believed to be by" but simply state that it's by Tolkien: I assume therefore that they think they have good reason to think this is the case. <br /><br />That said, I'm not a handwriting expert: what I look at is (1) content of the piece and (2) plausibility of provenance. On those headings I didn't see any red flags. Wayne and Christina play close attention to auctions of Tolkien items, so their option carries a lot of weight. The key piece of evidence, I shd think, wd be if the one Elvish word (ANAIRE) passes muster and what it tells us about the piece (e.g., likely date of composition); Carl is obviously an expert there. But I haven't seen any online comments by either Wayne & Christina nor Carl. All I've got right now are internet rumors, and I'd want more than that to give a possible new piece a thumbs down, certainly not without looking into it more closely. <br /><br />Hopefully more information about the piece will shortly be forthcoming.<br /><br />--John R.John D. Rateliffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12324926298336489295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2239062544101975016.post-36729850775156508352014-11-08T01:17:02.333-08:002014-11-08T01:17:02.333-08:00Hi, John, thanks for your wonderful work, we of To...Hi, John, thanks for your wonderful work, we of Tolkien Italia follow it constantly: http://bit.ly/1z2tcKQ<br /><br />But, as reported by Eduardo Stark from a personal e-mail, Hammond&Scull have raised valid doubts about the authenticity of the card where the poem might be written. And Carl F. Hostetter agreed.<br /><br />You've seen many of Tolkien's manuscripts. Don't you find suspicious too?Gabriele Marconihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00818217610122939576noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2239062544101975016.post-82635325869039727632014-11-08T01:15:03.290-08:002014-11-08T01:15:03.290-08:00This comment has been removed by the author.Gabriele Marconihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00818217610122939576noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2239062544101975016.post-14329509568652789652014-11-08T01:11:53.104-08:002014-11-08T01:11:53.104-08:00There are questions over its authenticity I gather...There are questions over its authenticity I gather.<br />IanCAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14584943826741212081noreply@blogger.com