Thomas James Wise
Encyclopedia
Thomas James Wise was a bibliophile who collected the Ashley Library
, now housed by the British Library
, and later became known for the literary forgeries and stolen documents that were resold or authenticated by him.
His collection was funded by selling duplicates and acting as an agent for wealthy collectors. Wise was given an honorary M.A. degree by the University of Oxford and elected an honorary Fellow of Worcester College due to his services to bibliographical science. He become a member of the Consultative Committee of the Friends of the Bodleian and was elected President of the Bibliographical Society in 1922–1924.
had been involved in the fabrication and sale of many of the same pamphlets to collectors.
Shortly after Wise's death the Library was sold to the British Museum by his widow for £66,000. The works were compared with the British Museum's former collection at which point it was discovered that over 200 book leaves were missing and 89 of these matching leaves were found in the Wise volumes. Henry Wrenn had built up a drama collection (housed in the University of Texas) and Wise had helped with supplying these volumes, when the Texas authorities sent relevant volumes for comparison, 60 of these books were also found to have been completed with thefts from the British Museum library.
A detailed scientific investigation by David Foxon was published by the Bibliographic Society in 1959 with the conclusion that Wise must have known that some of the book leaves added to his collection were stolen and that it was probable that he would have taken the leaves himself.
Wise remarried in June 1900 to Frances Louise Greenhaigh and dedicated the final volume of the Ashley Library catalogue to her.
, Swinburne
, Landor
, Wordsworth, Coleridge
, Ruskin
, the Brownings
, the Brontë
s, Shelly
and Conrad
. He was the copyright owner and co-editor of the Bonchurch edition of Swinburne's works.
Ashley Library
The Ashley Library is a collection of original editions of English poets from the 17th century onwards, including their prose works as well as those in verse. Collected by the bibliographer, collector and forger Thomas James Wise. The library was sold to the British Museum by his widow, Frances...
, now housed by the British Library
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and is the world's largest library in terms of total number of items. The library is a major research library, holding over 150 million items from every country in the world, in virtually all known languages and in many formats,...
, and later became known for the literary forgeries and stolen documents that were resold or authenticated by him.
Collecting career
Wise began collecting books as a schoolboy, spending his pocket money at the barrows in Farringdon Street. He was a keen collector of first editions in original condition. His interests were Poetry followed by drama and his collection dating back to Elizabethan publications was an exhaustive representation.His collection was funded by selling duplicates and acting as an agent for wealthy collectors. Wise was given an honorary M.A. degree by the University of Oxford and elected an honorary Fellow of Worcester College due to his services to bibliographical science. He become a member of the Consultative Committee of the Friends of the Bodleian and was elected President of the Bibliographical Society in 1922–1924.
Forgeries and thefts
In 1934 his reputation was damaged by the publication of "An Enquiry into the Nature of Certain Nineteenth Century Pamphlets" by John Carter and Graham Pollard. This proved that a large number of rare first edition pamphlets from 19th century authors which depended solely on Wise's published works for their authenticity were fakes. Wise and a fellow bibliophile Harry Buxton FormanHarry Buxton Forman
Henry "Harry" Buxton Forman CB was a Victorian-era bibliographer and antiquarian bookseller whose literary reputation is based on his bibliographies of Percy Shelley and John Keats...
had been involved in the fabrication and sale of many of the same pamphlets to collectors.
Shortly after Wise's death the Library was sold to the British Museum by his widow for £66,000. The works were compared with the British Museum's former collection at which point it was discovered that over 200 book leaves were missing and 89 of these matching leaves were found in the Wise volumes. Henry Wrenn had built up a drama collection (housed in the University of Texas) and Wise had helped with supplying these volumes, when the Texas authorities sent relevant volumes for comparison, 60 of these books were also found to have been completed with thefts from the British Museum library.
A detailed scientific investigation by David Foxon was published by the Bibliographic Society in 1959 with the conclusion that Wise must have known that some of the book leaves added to his collection were stolen and that it was probable that he would have taken the leaves himself.
Personal life
In 1890 Wise married Selina Fanny Smith (aged 22) and they moved into 52 Ashley Road, Hornsey Rise (leading to the name of the "Ashley Library"). By 1895 Selina deserted her husband on the grounds that he was fully devoted to his book collection rather than their marriage. In 1897 they were formally divorced and Wise moved to St. George's Road in Kilburn (now Priory Terrace).Wise remarried in June 1900 to Frances Louise Greenhaigh and dedicated the final volume of the Ashley Library catalogue to her.
Publications
Wise's published works included detailed bibliographies of TennysonTennyson
Alfred, Lord Tennyson, the first Baron Tennyson, was an English poet.Tennyson may also refer to:-People:* Baron Tennyson, the barony itself** Alfred, Lord Tennyson , poet...
, Swinburne
Swinburne
Swinburne may refer to:* A place:**Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, Australia**Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus in Kuching, Malaysia**Swinburne Senior Secondary College in Melbourne, Australia...
, Landor
Walter Savage Landor
Walter Savage Landor was an English writer and poet. His best known works were the prose Imaginary Conversations, and the poem Rose Aylmer, but the critical acclaim he received from contemporary poets and reviewers was not matched by public popularity...
, Wordsworth, Coleridge
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Samuel Taylor Coleridge was an English poet, Romantic, literary critic and philosopher who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake Poets. He is probably best known for his poems The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Kubla...
, Ruskin
John Ruskin
John Ruskin was the leading English art critic of the Victorian era, also an art patron, draughtsman, watercolourist, a prominent social thinker and philanthropist. He wrote on subjects ranging from geology to architecture, myth to ornithology, literature to education, and botany to political...
, the Brownings
Robert Browning
Robert Browning was an English poet and playwright whose mastery of dramatic verse, especially dramatic monologues, made him one of the foremost Victorian poets.-Early years:...
, the Brontë
Brontë
The Brontës were a nineteenth-century literary family associated with Haworth in the West Riding of Yorkshire, England. The sisters, Charlotte , Emily , and Anne , are well-known as poets and novelists...
s, Shelly
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Percy Bysshe Shelley was one of the major English Romantic poets and is critically regarded as among the finest lyric poets in the English language. Shelley was famous for his association with John Keats and Lord Byron...
and Conrad
Joseph Conrad
Joseph Conrad was a Polish-born English novelist.Conrad is regarded as one of the great novelists in English, although he did not speak the language fluently until he was in his twenties...
. He was the copyright owner and co-editor of the Bonchurch edition of Swinburne's works.