£6.5m bid for archive

The National Library of Scotland is launching a £6.5 million appeal to help it acquire the John Murray publishing house archive, which includes letters, journals and manuscripts from figures such as Jane Austen, Lord Byron, Sir Walter Scott and Charles Darwin. The archive is on offer to the library for £33 million rather than its £45 million valuation. The Scottish Executive has already pledged £6.5 million. It is hoped that a National Lottery grant will cover the remaining £20 million.