This series contains correspondence received by Nicolson from a wide range of friends between 1932-1977, with the majority of the material dating from the 1930s and 1940s. The letters are predominantly of a personal nature, but - given that many of Nicolson's friends shared his love of art and were active in the field - many contain discussion about related matters. In particular; views on works seen in public and private collections; artists; exhibitions; as well as research/writing projects etc. The letters also include discussion of relationship and friends. A small number of letters - mostly dating post 1940s - are exclusively concerned with professional matters, in particular Nicolson's work commissioning articles for the Burlington Magazine.
It is clear that the series is not comprehensive: it does not include all the correspondence received by Nicolson. Letters from his close family, for example, are entirely absent. Even within the existing files, it is clear that some letters are missing. It is not known why these particular letters were retained.
In some cases, the letters were not dated. In these instances, where the original envelopes had been retained, 'sent' dates have been recorded. In the absence of envelopes, it has often been possible to ascertain approximate dates from the journals and these have been recorded in square brackets.
In many cases the letters are best read alongside the journals.
Apart from a file entitled 'received at Oxford', Nicolson had organised the letters alphabetically by correspondee. This arrangement has been retained. Correspondees with 5 letters or more have been given their own file. Correspondees with less than 5 letters have been added to a 'miscellaneous' file. There are two miscellaneous files: within these files, correspondence has been filed aphabetically by surname and first name (whichever is known).