The proprietors of B&B Rare Books in New York City became suspicious last year when a young man arrived with a remarkable collection of vintage literature to sell. Included in his offerings was a bound volume containing 37 love letters, some handwritten, penned by English poet John Keats for his fiancée, Fanny Brawne.
According to Joshua Mann, the co-owner of the store, the seller asserted that the items had been in his family for generations, originating from his grandfather, although he failed to provide any supporting evidence. Mann expressed a sense of unease about the situation, which was confirmed as the books, valued at roughly $3 million US ($4.1 million Cdn), were identified as stolen from a private collection in the 1980s. Consequently, they were returned to the rightful owner.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg emphasized the importance of preventing the borough from becoming a hub for trafficked art and antiquities following the incident.
John Keats, a renowned poet of the Romantic era, considered Fanny Brawne to be his true love and inspiration. Despite their plans to marry, Keats passed away in Rome in 1821 at the age of 25, leaving a heart-wrenching final letter to Brawne expressing his deep affection for her.
Upon Brawne’s death in 1865, the letters were inherited by her children and later sold at auction in 1885. The collection eventually found its way into the possession of John Hay Whitney, a notable figure in the publishing industry. However, it was discovered that at least 28 rare items, including the stolen Keats letters, were taken from Whitney’s estate in the 1980s.
In a recent turn of events, the stolen books resurfaced in 2025 when an individual attempted to sell 17 of them to B&B Rare Books and Adam Weinberger Rare Books in Manhattan. This prompted Mann and his business partner to quickly devise a strategy to investigate the books’ origin, eventually leading to their identification as stolen items.
The recovered books were returned to Peter di Bonaventura, Whitney’s grandson, at a press conference. The remaining missing items are yet to be located, and an ongoing investigation into the theft is underway. The family intends to auction the collection, which includes works by prominent authors such as Wilde and Joyce, with proceeds going to charity.
Despite the high value of the Keats letters, Mann expressed mixed feelings about them returning to auction, hoping they would go to public institutions or special collection libraries instead of solely to the highest bidder. Scholars like John Savarese from the University of Waterloo underscore the immense historical and sentimental value of the rediscovered letters to admirers of Keats and Romantic literature.