Ludwig van Beethoven, Brief an Artaria & Comp., Wien, 17. Dezember 1820, Autograph

Beethoven thanks the publisher Artaria for a loan already received and now asks for another one so as not to lose his shares. (The previous year he had mortgaged one of his shares and was afraid of losing it as he had extended the repayment date several times.) Beethoven promises to repay the loan within three months and in return offers the publisher a free composition to keep. Artaria later received the Variations on "La ci darem la mano" for two oboes and cor anglais WoO 28, an older composition from 1797, which he did not, however, publish. Artaria was not repaid the loan by the composer. It was only repaid in January 1828 out of his estate.