From Thomas Going
Southend, Essex
. . . and good riddance, it seems.
Does it matter when we disperse at auction a major archive of scientific and
technical papers, photographs and historic artefacts encapsulating the very
origins of a major science-led industry? Some might think not, but that is
exactly what GEC will shortly do with the complete archive of the Marconi
Company— at Christie’s in London, on 24 and 25 April.
It is clear from Christie’s press release that this material is an
unparalleled record of the origins and development of “wire-less”
communications, worldwide, and as such would be of first importance to maritime,
military and general historians. Part of the tragedy is that this collection has
been so little studied, and that no attempt was made to display it during the
Marconi Centenary Year. Nor has any worthwhile monograph seen recent
publication.
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International interest in this auction will be very great; and in the absence
of intervention, dispersal abroad is likely. The Royal Commission on Historic
Manuscripts and the National Heritage Memorial Fund should consider this case as
a matter of urgency.
Meanwhile, where are our national museums and professional institutions who
should surely be exercising a watching brief? And if this sale goes
through—what other major institutions will see fit to follow in taking the
car-boot sale approach to their (and our) historical inheritances?
