Main content

Gabriel Iturri, Letters to His Mother

Notifications

Held at: Princeton University Library: Manuscripts Division [Contact Us]

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Princeton University Library: Manuscripts Division. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.

Overview and metadata sections

Iturri

Gabriel Iturri, also known as Gabriel de Iturri or Gabriel de Yturri, was born in Yerba Buena, a small hamlet in Tucumán Province, Argentina, on March 12, 1860. The second son of Genoveva Zurita and Pedro Iturri, the young Iturri was remembered by the Frenchman Paul Groussac, his schoolteacher at the Colegio Nacional de Tucumán, for his talents on stage. The young Iturri performed the lead role of Marcela in a school production of Marcela o cuál de las tres, displaying the vibrant charisma that would later earn him a place in Parisian society.

With the establishment of a new railroad connecting Tucumán and Buenos Aires in 1876, Iturri left home and ventured to Buenos Aires, with the intent of continuing his studies. Five years later, Iturri journeyed to Europe, residing for two years in Lisbon, before arriving in Paris in 1883. As secretary and companion to Robert de Montesquiou, whom he met at an exposition of Delacroix at the École des Beaux Arts in 1885, the pair enjoyed what Montesquiou characterized as "twenty years of incomparable friendship, of permanent and blazing zeal, of fearless and long-sighted devotion, of inalterable and constant faithfulness, that only expired with [Iturri's] death." During these years, Gabriel Iturri added a nobiliary particle to his name, becoming Gabriel de Iturri. This choice may have been prompted by Robert de Montesquiou; in any case, it explains the multiple forms and spellings of his name.

Iturri returned to Tucumán only once after leaving home, in 1890, to see his much beloved mother. Gabriel Iturri died in 1905 from complications related to diabetes.

Sources:

Montesquiou-Fézensac, Robert de, Le chancelier de fleurs: douze stations d'amitié, Chateaudun: La Maison du Livre par La Société Typographique, 1908. http://reynaldo-hahn.net/Html/ecritsdiversChancelier.htm

Páez de la Torre, Carlos, El argentino de oro: una vida de Gabriel Iturri, Buenos Aires: Bajo La Luna, 2011.

This collection consists of 25 letters written by Gabriel Iturri: 24 sent to his mother Genoveva Zurita Iturri and 1 to his sister-in-law, Mercedes Aguirre Uriarte de Iturri. It includes 1 bound volume of the Argentine periodical Caras y Caretas (May 1910), which has an interview with Robert de Montesquiou on the subject of Iturri. In addition, each letter was transcribed by a descendant of Gabriel Iturri and a computer print-out of the transcription is included with the corresponding letter.

Purchased from Maria T. Iturri Carbonell in February 2012 (AM2012-70).

For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.

This collection was processed by Jill Baron in April 2012. Finding aid written by Jill Baron in April 2012.

No appraisal information is available.

Publisher
Manuscripts Division
Finding Aid Date
2012
Access Restrictions

The collection is open for research.

Use Restrictions

Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.

Collection Inventory

Arrangement

Arranged roughly in chronological order, even when certain letters lack a clear date.

Scope and Contents

This series consists of twenty-four letters written by Gabriel Iturri to his mother, and one letter written to his sister-in-law. One of the items [ALS dated November 5, 1892, in Folder 8] appears to be two separate letters. As such, the letters are counted as two, even though they were originally kept together. This order has been retained. In addition, each letter has been transcribed by a descendant of Gabriel Iturri, and a computer print-out of each transcription is included with the original letter.

Physical Description

1 box

Genealogical Information about Gabriel Iturri, undated. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

A computer print-out (2 pages) of genealogical information about Gabriel Iturri's family provided by one of his descendants.

Physical Description

1 folder

2 ALsS, 1876 December 6-15. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

2 ALsS, 1881-1889. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

2 ALsS, circa 1890. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

3 ALsS, 1890 October 4-November 20. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

2 ALsS, undated. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

4 ALsS, 1892 February 20-August 20. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

4 ALsS, 1892. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

2 ALsS, 1894 August 29. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

3 ALsS, 1898 July 5-1900 November 5, undated. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

Scope and Contents

Consists of bound volume of the Argentine periodical Caras y Caretas (Number 607), 195 pages, which includes an interview with Robert de Montesquiou on the subject of Gabriel Iturri. Computer print-out of transcription of interview included in folder.

Arrangement

Not arranged according to any arrangement scheme.

Physical Description

1 box

Caras y Caretas, 1910 May 25. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Bound volume of the Argentine periodical Caras y Caretas (Number 607), 195 pages, which includes an interview with Robert de Montesquiou on the subject of Gabriel Iturri. Computer print-out of transcription of interview included in folder.

Physical Description

1 folder

Print, Suggest