"The Young Men's Magazine, Number 2" an unpublished manuscript by Charlotte Brontë has sold for a record value of £690,850 at a Sotheby's auction in London.
The manuscript was written in August 1830 when Charlotte was just 14 years old, 17 years before she wrote the world famous novel, Jane Eyre.
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| Charlotte Brontë |
Sotheby's senior specialist in books and manuscripts, Gabriel Heaton, said that the manuscript, which is set in Glass Town, the earliest fictional world created by the Bronte siblings, contains a colourful tale of murder and madness which includes a precursor to one of the most famous scenes in Jane Eyre - the moment Bertha, Mr Rochester's insane wife, seeks revenge by setting fire to the bed curtains in her husband's chamber. He added that the manuscript marked Charlotte Brontë's first burst of creativity and provided a rare and intimate insight into one of history's great literary minds.
The tiny book, pictured below, contained over 4,000 words over 19 pages.
The Bronte Parsonage Museum in Haworth, West Yorkshire (based in what used to be Charlotte's house), stopped bidding at £560,000. The winning bidder was French museum La Musie des Lettres et Manuscrits. The book will be exhibited from January.
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