Content and structure
Scope and content (narrative)
The series consists of letters written by Gertrud Bortstieber to friends, relatives and professional contacts, as well as to editors—the latter mostly on behalf of her husband, György Lukács. Most of these letters are copies made by Bortstieber at the time of writing. However, some of the letters and postcards have actually been mailed by Bortstieber to the addressees, and were most likely returned and added to the collection later. Among the more notable addressees are members of Gertrud Bortstieber's family, as well as Lilly Becher, Cesare Cases, Tibor Déry, Giulio and Renata Einaudi, Ernő Gerő, Walter Janka, Emil Kolozsvári Grandpierre, Thomas Mann, István Örkény, and Zoltán Szántó. Two imaginary letters to Joseph Stalin (one in French and one in Hungarian), are also part of the series. The letters in this series are in German, Hungarian, English, Italian, and in French.
In 2020, the heirs of Gertrud Bortstieber donated further letters to Blinken OSA. These accruals, mostly consisting of letters sent to the family, are now archived in series HU OSA 439-2-1.