Special Collections

The University of Sussex’s Special Collections are now known as Heritage Collections. Our Heritage Collections consist of archives, artworks and other items which provide evidence of historic activity.

Most of this material is unique and can only be found at Sussex. Many of the published works in the collection are scarce, with few physical copies held elsewhere.

Collections

Acquired archives

Archives are records produced by individuals and organisations. They are often made up of letters, diaries and other documents. They can also include photographs, sound recordings and other audio-visual media.

These archives have been acquired by the University to support teaching and research. Some highlights of these collections are:

• Literary archives, including correspondence and manuscripts from writers such as Virginia and Leonard Woolf, Rudyard Kipling and May Sinclair.
• German-Jewish family papers, documenting the lives of German speaking Jews who escaped Nazi persecution in central Europe.
• The Richard Attenborough papers, recording the life and work of the actor, director and former Chancellor of the University of Sussex.
• Resistance Testimony archive, which reflects the lives of civilians who resist oppressive regimes, such as anti-apartheid activists in South Africa and the French Resistance in WW2.

These archives are held at The Keep.

University archive

Some records created by the University are added to the archive to become part of its organisational memory. This is governed by the University’s Master Records Retention Schedule.

Although these archives are retained rather than acquired, we sometimes collect material from other people and organisations where it can support our understanding of the University’s history.

The University archive is held at The Keep. Most of the material is available to researchers on request.

Some of the most commonly used items from this collection are the regular newsletters produced by the University, such as the Bulletin and Focus. These have been digitised and are available on JSTOR.

Mass Observation archive

Mass Observation was founded as a research project in 1937, collecting and studying the opinions and behaviours of everyday people in Britain. The organisational archive was placed at Sussex in the 1970s. The research project was revived in 1981 and continues to this day, creating new data and archival material.

The collection is owned by the Mass Observation Archive, the charity which funds the research, engagement and management of the archives by the University. The collection is held at The Keep.

Much of the material has been digitised and is available online through subscribing institutions. More information about the Mass Observation Archive can be found at: massobs.org.uk.

Artworks

The University’s artwork collection consists of paintings, sculpture and decorative art, such as silverware. These items were often gifted to the University, or occasionally commissioned.

Many of these works are on display in public areas of the Library and other buildings on campus, and are sometimes loaned for use in staff offices. Some pieces of ‘public art’ (those works designed for display outdoors or in a specific location) may be found in outside areas on campus.

The most famous artwork in our collection is Ivon Hitchens’ Day’s Rest, Day’s Work, which usually hangs in the Mandela Hall in Falmer House.

The largest collection we own by a single artist is that of Arnold Daghani. Born into a Jewish family in Romania in 1909, Daghani was a Holocaust survivor who eventually settled in Hove. After his death in 1985, over 6000 of his works were donated to the University.

Rare books

These collections consist of over 3000 volumes, many of which were printed before 1800. It also includes a small number of incunabula: books published before 1500, in the early days of movable type printing.

Many of these books were given to the University by individual collectors, such as Michael Travers and Samuel Henry Baker. The Travers collection documents the development of book printing and binding in England, and includes a copy of the Polychronicon, the first book printed in English by William Caxton in 1485. The Baker collection includes many beautifully bound and illustrated works, including a Second Folio edition of the complete works of William Shakespeare printed in 1633.

Our Rare Book collections are held at The Keep. Researchers can request access to many of these books.

Documents & Ephemera

This collection consists of printed material such as newsletters, pamphlets and governmental reports.

The majority is from the British Library for Development Studies. This was compiled by the Institute of Development Studies to bring together new publications of ‘grey literature’ (mostly governmental and non-governmental reports) from across the globe. Dating from the founding of IDS in 1966 to the mid-1990s, this material provides a rich record of social, political and economic activity in the Global South.

There is also a substantial collection of UK and Brighton-focused pamphlets, reports, newsletters, fliers, election materials and other ephemeral items originating from our original ‘Documents Collection’.

Our Documents & Ephemera collection is held in the library on campus.

Donations

We rarely purchase new items for the Heritage Collections. Most of our acquisitions are given to us in the form of gifts.

We actively collect material for the Acquired Archives and Artwork collections. If appropriate, we will also consider material that can be added to the University Archive.

If you have an item or set of works that you would like to donate to the University that might suit one of these collections, please get in touch.

We no longer actively collect material for our Rare Books and Documents & Ephemera collections. Any offers of works that would fit these collections will be declined.

Further details of our acquisition and disposal policies can be found on our website.

Enquiries

To access items held at The Keep, please visit their website and sign up as a user. You will then be able to order any items you would like to view in advance of your visit.

To access or learn more about the Documents & Ephemera collection, including the British Library of Development Studies, please contact us at library.collections@sussex.ac.uk.

For all other queries about our Heritage Collections, please email library.specialcoll@sussex.ac.uk.