Brief aan Philip Zilcken Possibly 1918

This letter was written in 1915 by the Belgian author Cyriel Buysse. It’s ink on paper, unassuming materials that belie the turbulent social context in which it was created. Note the letterhead indicating that this correspondence relates to “tobacco for the Belgian soldier.” A small printed vignette in the upper left corner of the stationery shows two soldiers, one lighting the other’s pipe. Tobacco was considered essential for morale during the First World War, which had a profound impact on the economies of Europe. The text conveys a request for support, then a postponement of a “representation of benevolence.” Despite its elegant penmanship, the letter speaks of disrupted plans, all the more poignant given the global upheaval of the war. What could be more quotidian than a letter? Yet its very existence speaks volumes about the relationship between material culture and social circumstances.