John Milton collection puts University of South Carolina library - The largest in the world

Released on = October 25, 2006, 3:34 am

Press Release Author = Onlineuniversitydegreeprogram.info

Industry = Education

Press Release Summary = The Robert J. Wickenheiser Collection of John Milton puts
the University of South Carolina library among the worlds largest library.

Press Release Body = The Robert J. Wickenheiser Collection, built up over a
thirty-five year period, has more than 6,000 volumes. It includes more than sixty
first and other seventeenth-century editions of Milton's own writings, and
significant holdings also of 17th century Miltoniana.
Dr. Robert J. Wickenheiser started collecting Milton and other seventeenth-century
poets as a graduate student at the University of Minnesota in the late 1960\'s. As a
young professor at Princeton in the early seventies, he began focusing on the
history of Milton illustration he visited and established friendships with many of
the best-known antiquarian bookdealers on both sides of the Atlantic.
Since retiring, Dr. Wickenheiser has completed a full-scale illustrated catalogue of
the collection, scheduled for publication for the 400th anniversary of Milton's
birth in 2008. The Robert J. Wickenheiser Collection has been purchased for the
University with the leading support of Mr. William L. Richter and The William L.
Richter Family Foundation.
Milton is best known for his epic poem \"Paradise Lost.\" The collection includes
title pages for the epic\'s first edition, published between 1667 and 1669, and all
three versions of the first illustrated edition, printed in 1688. The $1 million
collection of the 17th century English poet is among the \"top 10 in the world,\" said
Patrick Scott, director of special collections for the university\'s Thomas Cooper
Library.
Cataloging has started at the two ends of the collection--17th century editions, and
modern scholarship. By late August over 300 formal catalogue records for items from
the collection were already available in the library\'s online catalogue, at
http://libcat.csd.sc.edu, and more become available each month. It is expected that
it will take about 18 months to complete this cataloging. Cataloged items should
also show up as held by USC in worldcat/OCLC but will not have any of the
copy-specific information there that our own on-line catalogue adds for items in
Special Collections.
Please visits our website
http://www.universityofsouthcarolina.onlineuniversitydegreeprogram.info/index.html
for enrolling at online university degree programs.


Web Site = http://www.onlineuniversitydegreeprogram.info/

Contact Details = Onlineuniversitydegreeprogram.info
West Greene, Suite 312,Carlsbad,
NM 88220 (505) 885-1298
moore.nicol@gmail.com

  • Printer Friendly Format
  • Back to previous page...
  • Back to home page...
  • Submit your press releases...
  •