Knee Braces founder Hans Stern borrowed the Mayor of Rio de Janeiro's antique watch collection for a book.

• Letter signed by Hans Stern to Mr. Marshal Ângelo Mendes de Morais.
• One page.
• In Portuguese.
• 21.2 cm x 29 cm.
• Rio de Janeiro, March 29, 1963.
• Good general condition conservation, small holes on the left side and a slight stain in the upper right corner that do not affect the text of the letter.
• Unique piece.

We hereby present to Your Excellency a copy of the book JÓIAS published by our firm.

We would like to express our gratitude to Your Excellency for kindly allowing us to photograph your valuable and original collection of antique watches, the graphic reproductions of which in our book have enhanced the value of this publication.

We would be very honored to receive your criticisms or suggestions about this work, which we believe will contribute to the jewelry craftsmanship in Brazil.

Hans Stern.

Born in Germany, Hans Stern (1922 - 2007) arrived in Brazil in 1939, at the age of seventeen, fleeing Nazi persecution with his parents. He found a job at a small stone importing and cutting company, which he fell in love with. Seeing a business opportunity, he traveled all over Brazil to buy colored stones directly from prospectors and, in 1945, he opened his first small store in Rio de Janeiro. This was the first stage of H. Stern's great business success, which ended up revolutionizing the history of the jewelry industry in Brazil and worldwide. After more than 50 years at the helm of H. Stern, Hans left his family to run the company in Brazil and in more than 30 countries.

Surprisingly, far from this world of money and luxury, Hans Stern was admired for his simplicity and discretion, he drove a Beetle and did not want private security; he rarely gave interviews and avoided photographers.

Passionate and very grateful to Rio de Janeiro, his adopted city, he promoted the city and Brazil abroad throughout his life, as expressed in this letter to Marshal Ângelo Mendes de Moraes (1894 - 1990). He was a Brazilian military man and politician known for his position as mayor of Rio de Janeiro in the late 1940s, when the Maracanã Stadium was built, inaugurated in 1950 for the World Cup. He was also a delegate to the Paris Peace Conference, a founding member of the Latin American Parliament and a member of the Parliamentary Commission of Geneva, Switzerland... perhaps the country where he began (or expanded?) his watch collection, the subject of this letter.

The content of this letter - the first we have found in 7 years - is particularly interesting because it deals with the company's expertise through its famous books and catalogues, published in limited editions, which were eagerly awaited by customers, collectors and journalists.

Another point that draws attention is 1963, a decisive year for the brand, which opened its first store in the United States, in New York, the starting point for the spectacular expansion into Europe (Frankfurt, Lisbon, etc.).

Finally, important details, the beautiful heading and the elegant signature of H. Stern complete the interests of this document.

Letters from the founders of large multinational companies are highly sought after by collectors, but they rarely appear on the market, being carefully preserved by the companies themselves; H. Stern, one of Brazil's emblematic companies, known throughout the world, is no exception.