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Keats Love Letters, Lost for 40 Years, Emerge for Auction
13 May
Summary
- Poet John Keats's love letters to Fanny Brawne are exhibited in London.
- The rediscovered letters, stolen decades ago, could fetch millions.
- An exhibition in London precedes their US auction in June.
Love letters penned by the Romantic poet John Keats to his fiancée, Fanny Brawne, are scheduled for exhibition in London. These eight letters, signed by Keats, will be displayed at Sotheby's New Bond Street from May 11-15, 2026, before their sale at Sotheby's New York in June. Auctioneers anticipate the correspondence will command between $1.5 million and $2.5 million.
The collection includes the earliest known letter from Keats to Brawne, dated July 1819, expressing his deep affection. These messages, which had been stolen approximately 40 years prior, were recovered in New York this year. They resurfaced in 2025 when brought to a rare book dealer.
Their return to the Whitney estate occurred on April 20, 2026, in coordination with the New York district attorney's office. This exhibition in London is notable as it is the first time these letters have been displayed in the city in 140 years. The pair's relationship, which began in 1818, was largely conducted through letters until Keats's death in 1821.
