Sir

Your readers may already have heard about the secret sale, by Keele University, of the Turner Collection of more than 1,400 mathematical and scientific books. Its loss was discovered in November by a researcher wishing to use the collection, which had been donated to the university by a private collector for this purpose.

Staff were forbidden to let anyone outside the university know about the sale. But we at the British Society for the History of Mathematics have discovered that the university's council allowed the sale — cheaply and in great haste — after being assured that the collection would not be broken up or leave the United Kingdom.

Within weeks the collection had been sold to a dealer, who has applied for export licences for 11 of the most valuable books.

We urge anyone who cares about this to write quickly to the Rt. Hon. Chris Smith MP, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (2 Cockspur Street, London SW1Y 5DH, UK; fax (0)171- 211 6249; chris.smith@culture.gov.uk), pressing for the export licences to be denied. Please also express your concerns to the Rt. Hon. David Blunkett MP, Secretary of State for Education (Sanctuary Buildings, Great Smith Street, London SW1P 3BT, UK; fax (0)171-925 6000; dfee.ministers@dfee.gov.uk) about this loss of an educational asset.

The Export Licence Unit says there is no provision for objecting to the export of a collection of items. This would permit the export of the Lewis Chessmen as a collection of single items or of a Gutenberg Bible as a collection of pages. Indeed, several of the Turner volumes containing diverse books bound together have each been listed as a number of separate items.

We believe that the UK government should require public institutions selling assets of national importance to do so publicly, so that other institutions have a chance to keep them in the United Kingdom. The government should open up the export licensing process to public scrutiny and should permit the Export Licence Unit to consider a collection as a whole when appropriate.

The Turner Collection contains several items of importance to this country's national heritage, including eight books that belonged to Isaac Newton, with his own markings; a page out of a Newton manuscript; and a book from the library of King Charles I with his signature. It was also one of the very few collections to have a published catalogue, which greatly enhanced its value to researchers.

Despite Keele's claims that no other library wanted to buy the collection for a suitable price, it had not been offered to any that we have contacted.

The British Library calls the Turner Collection ‘one of the most important research resources in its field outside London, Oxford and Cambridge’, and says: ‘The dispersal of the collection, or its loss to this country as a research resource, would be a matter of profound regret both to the British Library and to the wider library and research communities.’

There is no doubt that other institutions would offer this important collection a home if it were reacquired for the nation.