According to the common version, the famous Dutch artist did not cut off his ear himself, but lost him in a fight with his French colleague. We checked how believ is this version.

It was traditionally believed that the mentally unhealthy Vincent Van Gogh cut off his ear with a razor in the French town of Arle in 1888. However, in 2008, the book of German professors Hans Kaufman and Rita Wildans was published "Ear Van Gogh: Paul Gauguin and a vow of silence", instantly became a bestseller. The authors, historians of art, as a result of a large -scale investigation, came to the conclusion that Gauguin chopped off Van Goghu Rapira when they were fighting at the entrance to a brothel. Then Van Gogh wrapped his ear in a rag and gave it to a prostitute named Rachel - in this part, the canonical and new versions of the development of events coincide. Further, according to the researchers, both artists - each, due to their personal reasons - preferred not to mention this case.

The theory is widely used in world And Russian The media, partially replacing the canonical version of the loss of Van Gogh of his ear in the mass consciousness.

Paul Gauguin arrived in the Provenca city of Arle to his friend Van Gogh in October 1888. The Dutchman was very Rad What will spend the winter in the company of a friend. “It seems to me that if I find another artist who wants to develop the theme of the south and, like me, will be so absorbed in work that he will agree to live like a monk, visiting a brothel once every two weeks, and the rest of the time not to break away from work and not lose time in vain, then everything will get a job excellent. I am alone here and a little longing alone, ” - He wrote He, inviting the Frenchman to himself. Especially for the arrival of Gauguin, Van Gogh created a series of paintings, among which one can distinguish such works as “Yellow House” and “The Garden of the Poet”. However, Gauguin was soon disappointed in an untidy and unorganized friend and struggled to get along with him under one roof. "Firstly, - He wrote He later, - I found everywhere a mess that struck me. His box for paints barely accommodated all the tubes begun that he never closed; Nevertheless, despite all this chaos, on this mishmash, in his canvases there was something brilliant, in the speeches too. His Dutch head was ignited by the Bible, Dode, and the Goncurs. The embankments, bridges and boats in Arle, in short, the south, replaced him with his native Holland. He even forgot how to write Gollandic ... From the first month I saw that our general finances were in the same mess. ” Van Gogh in his letter to Brother Theo too I did not hidethat everything did not go very smoothly: "Our discussions are electrified to the limit, and after them we sometimes feel as devastated as the discharged electric battery."

One of the common classes of the two artists was their semi -working campaigns in the brothel. “We made several sorties into a cheerful house and, probably, we finish the fact that we are accustomed to working there. Gauguin is now busy with a canvas depicting a night cafe that I wrote; But he put into a picture the figures that he saw in a brothel. The thing promises to be very beautiful, ”said Van Gogh on November 1–2, 1888 in his letter Emil Bernara, a common friend of two artists.

What happened a few weeks after writing this rather optimistic letter? Historically, it was believed that on December 23, after the next series of quarrels with a colleague, Paul Gauguin went on an evening walk. Hearing his steps behind him, he turned around and saw Van Gogh with an open razor in his hand. Under the gaze of Gauguen, Van Gogh turned around and left. The frightened Frenchman spent the night in the city hotel, and the Dutchman went home and cut off a piece of ear with the same razor, put it in an envelope and carried it to the nearest brothel. There he handed the envelope to a familiar prostitute named Rashel, who at the sight of the contents of the envelope fainted. Van Gogh returned home, where the police found him the next morning and took him to the city hospital. In memory of this case, two self -portraits of Van Gogh with a bandaged ear remained to humanity: With a pipe And Without her.

According to Kaufman and Vildans, Gauguin left the yellow house on Lamartin Square on December 23 with things to spend the night at the hotel and the next morning to leave Arlle. The artist, carried away by fencing, had a rapier among his things, which, unfortunately, came in handy here. The quarrel flared up again, and Gauguin, trying to keep the Dutch at a distance, or in rage, or accidentally cut off his earlobe. Frightened by responsibility, Gauguin threw Rapir into the Ron River.

What evidence is based on the authors of the study? In fact, there are three of them. Firstly, on one of sketches Gauguen with his ear is written the Latin word ictus (“blow”) used by fencers.

Secondly, in one of his last letters of Van Gogh the Frenchman Requires Return his fencing mask and gloves remaining in a yellow house. From this, Kaufman and Wildans conclude that Rapir Gauguin took with him - at least from home. Finally, before us I came The phrase “you are silent addressed to the Frenchman. I will also be silent ”, which scientists consider evidence of a vow of silence.

However, if we talk about the world of professional researchers of Van Gogh's work, then the version of Kaufman and Wildans cannot be called dominant in it. Firstly, the theory is based on chains of assumptions and guesses. If the story with a razor is confirmed by diaries (including Gauguin), then the version with Rapira is built almost from scratch. For example, why Gauguin did not take all his fencing equipment (but did not forget about Rapier), the researchers do not explain. The authoritative Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam and today, more than a decade after the book of the Book of two Germans, insists On the version of the acquaintance and the razor (a knife called on the site).

In addition, in 2013, new details of the famous incident became known. Their discovered Researcher Martin Bailey, author of my Sunflower: The History of Van Gogh Masterpiece. The scientist found the first mention of this case in the press. A telegram of a special correspondent from Arles on December 24, 1888 was released on December 26 in the Parisian publication Le Petit Journal and contained the following text: “Last night a certain artist from Holland named Vincent after he cut his ear with a blade, came to the door of a brothel and handed a piece of his ear, interfered with a person, a man who opened the door. “Take it, it can be useful,” he said and left. Later, the police found this person lying in his house. His condition required an immediate transfer to the hospital. ” As Bailey suggests, the artist at that time already suffered from a long mental illness.

In 2016, researcher Bernadett Merphy discovered A note with a pattern from which it follows that Van Gogh cut off his earlobe, as is usually considered, but the entire ear sink. The document was dated to 1930, and its author, Dr. Felix Rey, worked in the Arlskoye Hospital in the winter of 1888-1889 and spent a lot of time with the recovering artist. In addition, Murphy established the identity of the prostitute who was handed over to - Gabrielle Berlatier.

Thus, most of the facts suggest that the version of Gauguen, which was detonant by Rapira, Vincen Van Gogh, should be considered exotic and unlikely.

Most likely not true

What do our verdicts mean?

Read on the topic:

1. The words of Van Gogh after cutting the ear are published
2. To whom did Van Goga give his ear?
3. Van Gogh. Letters.