THERE is new hope for the Wedgwood Museum archive after UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation) added it to its Memory of the World register.
It means that UNESCO has identified
the archive as one of only 20 items and collections among Britain's
libraries, archives and museums to represent the outstanding
heritage of the UK.
The move comes amid attempts to
persuade the government to intervene to save the archive after the
High Court ruled in December that the Barlaston collection could be
sold to help plug a £134m gap in the pension fund linked to the
collapse of the Wedgwood manufacturing firm.
Other items in the Memory of the World
register include King Charles I's Death Warrant and the Bill of
Rights.
The UNESCO listing is likely to add to
the pressure on the government to intervene - the Attorney General
is awaiting a case review to see whether he will win the right to
appeal over the High Court ruling - especially as the museum trust
is seen as the innocent victim of the legal wrangle over the
pension deficit and because the money raised from its sale would
cover only around 10% of the pension shortfall.
As ATG reported last month, unless
Culture Minister Ed Vaizey steps in to ringfence money raised so
that creditors cannot claim it, campaigners cannot launch a
fund-raising appeal.
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