“Dear Mr. Davis,

“As a member of a family resident in Surrey for nearly one hundred years on my father’s side, and for much longer on my mother’s side, I read with distress of the planned separation of Surrey Archaeological Society from its museum and even its library. The council should be forging an alliance with volunteers who maintain the important culture of the town of Guildford, where I was brought up, and which has produced so many leading archaeologists.

Dr Stoddart’s open letter to Cllr Davis

“By contrast you appear to seek the dismemberment of one of the most important local societies in Britain. You speak of the £2 million held in trust by the Society, but as a chartered surveyor, you will know how little that represents in the property market of Surrey, and, as a businessman, how little return there is today for a charity investing safely and wisely for the long term. I speak as a financial manager of an Institute that has trust funds many times the size held by the Surrey Archaeological Society, and we plan to hold those funds in trust for our descendants.

“A wonderful example was set by the late Prof. Sheppard Frere who attended my college, Magdalene, in Cambridge before teaching at Epsom College and working closely with the Surrey Archaeological Society. I have recently had the honour of writing his obituary for my college magazine and have researched how he was inspired by, and inspired in turn, the Surrey Archaeological Society during his early career, undertaking fieldwork, giving lectures and contributions to the museum and the society’s publications. He went onto to be one of the most significant archaeologists of Britain, as Professor of the Roman Empire in Oxford.

“I am now resident in Cambridge, another fine university town with an important local archaeological society built up over the generations, nurturing knowledge, treasured historical material culture and precious capital. The Arch and Anth museum in Cambridge is similarly at the centre of the Cambridge Antiquarian Society, and its remarkable library is housed in the same building.

“I urge you to model your actions on these two examples, a distinguished individual and another university city, rather than be remembered for the downgrading of an institution of national significance.

“Yours sincerely,

“Simon Stoddart”

An internal council review of the options for the museum is already under way. Apart from the relationship with the Surrey Archaeological Society a major decision to be taken is whether the museum should remain in its existing building at Castle Arch or be moved elsewhere.

Cllr Davis has been invited by The Guildford Dragon NEWS to respond.

See other articles on the museum listed here.