A collection of 115 volumes relating to Leonardo da Vinci, including facsimile editions of Leonardo manuscripts. Given the content of the collection, the books were presumably collected by Edward Alexander Coles MacCurdy (1871-1957) as part of his research for his books on Leonardo. Edward MacCurdy became an authority on the life and works on Leonardo, writing 'The mind of Leonardo da Vinci' (London, 1928), 'Leonardo da Vinci: the artist' (London, 1933) and 'The notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci' (London, 1938). Although the books appear to have come from Edward MacCurdy, the collection was jointly donated by him and his older brother, Charles Albert MacCurdy (1870-1941). The latter was a Liberal MP and a minister in Lloyd George's coalition government of the early 1920s. Charles later served as a director of 'The Daily Express' newspaper. Despite their later associations with literature, the MacCurdy brothers had a strict upbringing due to their father the Rev Alexander MacCurdy (1821-1891), a Methodist New Connexion minister, who was born in Scotland but spent the final years of his life in Loughborough, England. Charles MacCurdy later recalled that his father had been a rather stern figure, who on discovering his young sons had been reading adventure novels, threw them in fire.

Organisation

The books have been catalogued individually and have the shelfmark 'MacC.'.

Acquisition

The collection was presented from 1938 to 1940 by Edward MacCurdy and his brother, Charles, in memory of their father the Rev Alexander MacCurdy.