Monacensia archive head to present love letters from Munich writers

The Monacensia in the Hildebrandhaus, Maria-Theresia-Straße 23, is hosting a new instalment of its "SneakPeak" archive showcase on Thursday 10 September at 5.30pm. Admission is free, but registration is required.

The series regularly offers a look behind the scenes of the city's literary archive. Archivists present unusual documents, objects and stories from the papers of Munich authors, including material handed over during their lifetimes and estates left after their deaths.

In the September edition, head of the archive Thomas Schütte will talk about love letters. Such letters preserve the turbulent emotional lives of the people who wrote them and give very private insights into their world. For that reason they are among the most personal and most sensitive documents an archive holds.

Using selected originals, including handwritten material by Thomas Mann and Franziska zu Reventlow, Schütte will show what love stories archive documents can reveal.

The showcase aims to introduce the city's literary memory from different perspectives and to show how the literary archive works. The event takes place in the Salon Hildebrand at the Monacensia. Registration is by email to [email protected], and further information about the Monacensia is available at www.monacensia.org.