Item 1979/1 - Five letters from Christopher Blunt to Ian Stewart and one letter from Ian Stewart to Christopher Blunt

6 items, paper

Three letters from Christopher Blunt to Ian Stewart and three letters from Ian Stewart to Christopher Blunt with two attachments:
(a) letter from Christopher Blunt to Ian Stewart, manuscript, one folio (recto & verso), dated from Ramsbury on 8 January 1979, writing that being house-bound has enabled him to make good progress on the 10th-century volume and that he expects to have something to show him when he come to visit at Easter. He says that he has written to CSSL [i.e. Stewart Lyon] to ask how he getting on with the Edward the Elder piece and whether he would be able to join them at Easter. CEB then lists the "main pieces" that he still lacks, apparently in reference to particular coin types: (1) the c/bust type Edmund-Edgar and (2) the St Peter coinage. He notes that he is puzzled about Mercia 957-959 because they have more coins than they ought to have. He acknowledges that he needs to get to work on metrology and the hoard evidence, but recognises that the most demanding chapter will be the conclusion, which will need to pull together all the material. He asks for confirmation that IS is doing the saints and when he might expect the draft, expressing his hope "to get the material in sufficiently good shape by midsummer to put it out".
(b) letter from Christopher Blunt to Ian Stewart, manuscript, one folio (recto & verso), dated from Ramsbury on 25 January 1979, discussing financial arrangements for the publication of the East Anglia sylloge and expressing his concern that a loan of about £1500 will be needed to meet the shortfall in funds available for publication. He is worried about how to deal the current situation and says that he has written to Dorothy [Whitelock] and Michael [Dolley] to ask for their views and also asks IS for his. DW agreed that there should be a meeting with [Michael] and [J.M.] Wallace-Hadrill, but would prefer not to come herself. CEB asks IS whether it would be appropriate to arrange the meeting at the House of Commons at a time when both he and Michael are in London, noting that Micheal and Mark Blackburn should now be in Berlin & Dresden but are due back on Sunday.
(c) letter from Christopher Blunt to Ian Stewart, manuscript, single page, dated from Ramsbury on 31 January 1979, enclosing material "for information" and promising to keep IS posted. CEB notes that Michael Dolley has returned from East Germany after what Mark [Blackburn] described as a successful visit. Marks nevertheless said that MD was exhausted and wondered whether "he would get off to Australia on Friday".
(d) letter from Christopher Blunt to Ian Stewart, manuscript (carbon-copy), two pages on two folios (recto only), dated 1 March 1979, informing IS that the BM coin room is closing for two months for "stock-taking". He appraises IS of what he has accomplished, noting that he spoke with [Robert] Carson, who is as upset as anyone about the matter, and explained to him that [the closure?] "would cause great unhappiness, particularly among students from abroad". CEB's impression was that the decision came from the Trustees and not just the Director, and that it arose from concerns over security. He says that he asked Robert whether it would help if he were to write a letter to the Director in the interest of pointing out the sadness that the decision will cause. Robert said that there could be value in such letters, but he did not feel that the decision would be reversed. CEB says that the best they can do is to express their views to the Director.
(e) letter from Ian Stewart to Christopher Blunt, manuscript, single page, dated 10 April 1979, thanking CEB for his hospitality at Ramsbury and noting how much more relaxing it was to think about the problems of the 10th century rather than those of the 20th. He encloses the final section of his of his Vikings draft, which he describes as merely a basis for discussion and will need to be rewritten. He also encloses a copy of a pre-reform part of a paper by Stewart [Lyon]. He says that his overstrike of Edmund is missing from his 10th-century tray, and wonders whether he might have left it with CEB.
(f) letter from Christopher Blunt to Ian Stewart, manuscript, one folio (recto & verso), dated from Ramsbury on 22 April 1979, thanking IS for sending the final part of his Viking contribution and the copy of the pre-reform part of CSSL's 1976 paper, commenting on CSSL's paper and noting that he will meet with CSSL after the upcoming BNS meeting. He says that he doesn't believe that he has IS's Edmund overstrike, at least not if it's a whole coin, but he says that IS did leave with him a cut quarter that IS thought was overstruck on something. That coin is now in the BM and therefore "incommunicado for another fortnight", noting that it should reopen on 5 May.