Keele's sale of rare books to fund its library caused protest among scholars and raised questions over universityies' moral rights to sell valuable collections abroad, reports Oliver Swanton
At least one book from Keele University’s controversial sale of rare mathematical books has already been resold in New York, as academics and librarians fight to keep the collection in Britain. The decision to dispose of the 1,400 books of the Turner Collection, including early editions of Isaac Newton and Galileo, infuriated leading mathematicians who havoc petitioned the culture secretary, Chris Smith, to delay necessary export licences. They want auditors at Keele University to examine the conditions of the £1 million sale to a local book dealer.
Built up over 50 years by Charles Turner, an eccentric civil servant, the collection at Keele included all three editions of Newton’s Principia, a copy of Galilco’s Il Saggiatore of 1625 annotated by the author (this makes it an official manuscript) and Robert Recorde’s Whetstone of Witte of 1557, the first English algebra book. It is now clear that 200 more mathematical books, known as the ‘with Turner’ collection, have also been sold. There was no mention to the university’s academic senate or ruling council of the sale of these books which were not part of the Turner bequest, but bought with public funds for the use of Keele staff and students.
At least one book from this collection has surfaced in New York. Edward Cocker’s Arthemik of 1753, complete with Keele University library embossed stamp, was bought by Bill Kalush from British book dealer Robert Downie. The book was one of the most famous arithmetic books of all time.
Downie, a graduate of Keele who has done regular business with the university over the years, said the ‘with Turner’ collection was “all part of the arrangement of the sale”. Three book dealers have been associated with the sale of the Turner Collection — Robert Downie, Daniel McDowell and Simon Finch. Downie maintains he only approached Keele University after the authorities had decided to sell. The council’s minutes of June 28, 1998, when a decision to sell was first agreed “in principle’, record that a commercial offer of £1 million had already been made.
Despite a vote in senate against the sale, the university’s council decided to sell the collection, including eight works from Isaac Newton’s own library, some of which he had extensively annotated.
David Singmaster, a retired professor of mathematics at South Bank University and an active member of the British Society for the History of Mathematics, said: “If money was the principle reason for the sale, Keele could have got much more. Newton’s books alone could have fetched £1 million at auction.” In the US, a first edition of Newton’s Principia went for £200,000 at auction in New York and in October an Archimedes manuscript fetched $2.2 million.
The deal was only uncovered by chance when in November a researcher routinely contacted the university to arrange to use the books. He was told the Turner Collection was no longer available. On further investigation, John Fauvel of the British Society for the History of Mathematics discovered that “in conditions of great secrecy”, without public debate or discussion with library staff or users, it had been sold to a book dealer for £1 million.
The university says, that to the best of its knowledge, the collection was not purchased by a book dealer but by a major anonymous private collector. A university spokesman said that the sale proposal was debated by the vice-chancellor’s committee, the finance committee, the senate the university council.
He added that books sold were not unique and similar items were held elsewhere. “The collection was little used and was unrelated to the university’s current teaching.” He refused to specify who conducted the valuation on the Turner Collection, but was confident the selling price was a fair one.
Keele was assured at the time of the sale that the collection would remain intact and would not leave the country but failed to get this assurance in writing. “The proceeds of the sale have been ring-fenced and will be invested in library materials,” said the spokesman. The money would be used for computers and Internet access as well as books.
Meanwhile, outrage among academics and librarians grew further when it was found that, despite university managers’ assurances, London dealer Simon Finch had applied for licences to export the books to the US. The council’s minutes from last June record that the sale was agreed in principle, following further investigations of the options”. Within 10 days the books were removed from library shelves.
University managers maintain that other public institutions were approached with a view to buying the collection but declined to specify which ones. They did not offer the collection to Oxford, Cambridge, the Royal Society, the Royal Astronomical Society or the British Library, all of which have a strong, known interest in early mathematical works.
Neither did they consult the London Mathematical Society, the British Society for the History of Mathematics or the British Society for the History of Science. Dr David McKitterick, chief librarian at Trinity College, upholder of Newtonian heritage, said: “Some libraries would have worked extremely hard to pay —£1 million would not have been an impossible sum to find.”
Keele professor David Ingram recalled how Charles Turner often went without life’s luxuries, including winter coats, in order to buy books. In the 1960s, Turner decided to present his treasured collection to “a university library that had not had the opportunity or good fortune to acquire such an important special collection.”
As along-time friend of Professor Ingram, Turner decided to donate them to Keele University, where Ingram taught in the physics department. Princess Margaret, who was then chancellor of Keele, warmly thanked him in person.
Staff at Keele are angry the deal was done so swiftly, in conditions of such secrecy and that there was no consultation with library users. But Keele did not act illegally.
The chairman of the Museums and Galleries Commission, James Joll, has called
for urgent reform. Universities, he added, cannot simply regard such collections
as private assets to be sold off at will to the highest bidder. Despite protests,
Manchester University sold 97 magnificent medieval and Renaissance books and
manuscripts from the John Rylands Library in April 1988. The books, which
sold for £1,838,760 at Sotheby’s, were duplicates.
