The Byra J. and William P. Wreden Prize for Collecting Books and Related Materials

- $1,000 cash prize for the best collection

- Open to Stanford undergraduates and graduate students

Collecting books and other printed materials is a mark of a literate and cultured society. To foster this activity and to honor students' collecting efforts, SUL/AIR, with generous funding provided by the family and friends of Byra J. and William P. Wreden and the Book Club of California, has established a competition for a prize to be awarded to a student. This prize especially aims to recognize those who demonstrate a creative and innovative approach to collecting.

The book collecting competition is open to all Stanford students in a degree program. Contestants must limit their entry, limited to one per student, to no more than fifty items, which may represent any subject and may be chosen for any aspect of its content or bibliographical interest. Contestants will submit an annotated bibliography of their selection, accompanied by a short (500-750 word) essay describing how they assembled their collection and including plans for its continued growth.

A panel of librarians and faculty along with an antiquarian bookseller will serve as judges for the competition. When finalists are chosen from the written applications, they will be asked to display a sampling of their collection (five to ten items) and present a five-minute oral presentation before the panel, answering any questions about the collection the judges may have.

It is anticipated that the prize may be offered at two- or three-year intervals. Stanford University Libraries will administer the competition and will recommend the prize-winner to the University Librarian. A $1,000 prize will be awarded in the form of cash, given to enhance the collector's efforts; and the winning essay may be published in Imprint.

More information on the upcoming competition, including submission deadline and full contact information, will be forthcoming.

Enquiries: Roberto Trujillo (trujillo@stanford.edu) or John Mustain (jmustain@stanford.edu).

Graphic: "The Papermaker" by Jost Amman, from A True Description of All Trades, Published in Frankfort in the Year 1568.