Sandars Lecture 1: Collecting and preserving contemporary and historic archives

Cambridge University

November 11

Robinson College

Drawing on decades of experience in libraries and the book trade, this first lecture of the 2025 Sandars Series by Joan Winterkorn MBE will explore how cultural, institutional, and policy considerations have shaped the collecting of archives. The talk will offer a behind-the-scenes insight into the challenges and triumphs of a career dedicated to the preservation of literary and national heritage. Lectures will be held in-person at Robinson College in Cambridge, live-streamed and recorded. The talk will be followed by a drinks reception at Cambridge University Library. About the speaker: Joan has been an independent advisor on archives and manuscripts since 2012. She began her career as an archivist in London and then a rare book librarian at Cornell University before joining Bernard Quaritch Ltd in 1979. For more than four decades she has handled the valuation and sale of literary, historical, political, scientific and business archives.