Following George A. Simcox’s mysterious death off the coast of Northern Ireland in 1905, part of his library was donated to the College.

Simcox (b. 1841) was a British classical scholar, poet, and Fellow of Queen’s who collected and reviewed poetry by Pre-Raphaelite and late Romantic writers. This exhibition shows off three books from his personal collection, including Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s Poems, with a dedication to Simcox by the author.

The book 'The Works of William Blake' mounted in a cradle so the pages are open. This opening bears text form the poem 'Europe; A Prophecy' by Blake. The text is printed, likely lithographically, to resemble handwriting. There are decorative illustrations in black and grey on both pages, including a coiled dragon running alongside the inside margin of the right-hand page. There are black flourishes coming off some of the letters resembling smoke or mist.
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The Works of William Blake, vol. III, ed. by W. B. Yeats and E. Ellis (London: Quaritch, 1893)

Queen’s Vault.2024.65

The Works of William Blake, vol. III, ed. by W. B. Yeats and E. Ellis (London: Quaritch, 1893)

Queen's Vault.2024.65

D. G. Rossetti, Poems (London: F. S. Ellis, 1870).

Queen’s Vault.2024.15.EL

The book 'Poems' by D. G. Rossetti mounted in a cradle so the pages are open. On the left-hand page there are penciled Library shelfmarks. There is a dedication in Rosetti's hand on the right-hand page. It reads: To George A. Simcox, D. G. Rossetti 1870'. Beneath this is an oval accession stamp from The Queen's College Library.

Detail of the dedication to Simcox by Rossetti

A close-up on the dedication from Rossetti to Simcox in his book of poetry. It reads: To George A. Simcox, D. G. Rossetti 1870'
The book 'Letter and Spirit' lying flat so the cover is face-up. The cover is blue cloth with embosses red frames. There are embossed red snowflake-like designs at the head and foot of the cover. The title and author are embossed in gold.

To find out more about Simcox and his library, read our blog post here.

Curated By Felix Taylor, Library Assistant.

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