The bizarre collections up for a £500 'collecting prize' at prestigious Scottish university

They are on the shortlist for a university prize aiming to highlight the passion for curating personal collections of unusual items.

Now students’ personal collections - ranging from Beano annuals to historic images of Japan and vintage Agatha Christie novels - are to be considered for a £500 prize.

St. Andrews University, where the prize is awarded each year | Getty Images/iStockphoto

The prize, which will be announced this week, is offered in honour of James David Forbes, an eminent scientist and principal of the United College of St Salvator and St Leonard at St Andrews, whose library was presented to the university in 1929. He died in 1868.

In its tenth year, the prize is for the best collection of printed, manuscript or photographic material on any topic. The accolade aims to encourage and empower students with a passion for curation of their materials and emphasises the joy to be found in the practice.

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The prize, a partnership between the University of St Andrews Libraries and Museums department and antiquarian Bill Zachs, founder and director of the Blackie House Library and Museum, is open to all students who have a collection of printed, manuscript, or photographic material.

Past winners have included collections about mountaineering, green penguin book editions, Lesbian Pulp fiction and instruction manuals of South Indian dancing.

Six students have been shortlisted for this year’s prize. On the list for her collection of vintage editions of Robert Burns’s poetry is Evelyn Waddick, while Chenxiao Jin is a finalist for “19th-century depictions of Japan through the western gaze”.

Kate Oneal’s collection of the writings of Anne Carson and Zina Gharakhani’s on Agatha Christie in translation will also go up against Alexa Zildjian’s collection of typewriter fonts and William Lewis’s Beano annuals.

Mr Zachs said: “The James Forbes Book Collecting Prize at St Andrews University, like the prizes established at other Scottish universities [Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Glasgow] celebrate collecting in the past, present and future. Forbes, a brilliant physicist and glaciologist, gave his highly important scientific collection to the university of which he was principal.”

The winning student will also work with the university’s special collections librarians to find relevant books which are then donated in the student’s name to the university.

Mr Zachs said: “In doing so, the joy of collecting and philanthropy are united, honouring Forbes and this year’s winner.”

The winner is then eligible to submit their collection to a nationwide competition, which also has the dual concept of collecting and donating.

Zina Gharakhani's collection of Agatha Christie books is on the shortlist. | University of St Andrews

University of St Andrews assistant rare books librarian Briony Harding, who co-ordinates the prize each year, said: ”It’s fantastic that St Andrews has a collecting prize, which encourages students to collect written and printed material.

“It’s been a joy over the years to see just what students collect – not just the subject matter, but also the variety of objects, where printed material such as books, photographs and postcards can be supported by ceramic tiles, DVDs and typewriters.

“Many of the students, who don’t necessarily think of themselves as collectors, are passionate about what they collect, and I hope that the prize continues to encourage students on their collecting journey over the next ten years.”

Kate Oneal's collection of the writings of Anne Carson is also shortlisted. | University of St Andrews

Sean Rippington, head of archives and rare books at the University of St Andrews, said: “We’ve been collecting for over 600 years, with more than 220,000 rare and early printed books, a huge number of archives and manuscripts, and over a million photographs in our university collections and museums. They form a unique part of what makes St Andrews a world leading university.”