The clock is ticking for J.R.R. Tolkien fanatics who want to see the author's rare manuscripts, including drafts of "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit," before they return to the university archives.
The Haggerty Museum of Art's exhibition of Tolkien's original manuscripts opened Oct. 21 and will end Jan. 30.
After the exhibition closes, the 60-some manuscripts on display will be stored in a temperature- and humidity-controlled vault on the third floor of the John P. Raynor, S.J. Library, according to Matt Blessing, department head of the Special Collections and University Archives at Raynor.
Blessing said while the Tolkien exhibition will not return to the Haggerty, Tolkien fans can still view microfilm slides of the manuscripts in addition to the small permanent display at the third floor of Raynor.
The Tolkien manuscripts have been in the university's possession since 1957, he said. In total, Marquette owns 11,000 pages of manuscripts from "The Hobbit," "The Lord of the Rings," a short illustrated book called "Mr. Bliss" and the novella "The Farmer Giles of Ham." Marquette purchased the manuscripts directly from Tolkien.
"This is a rich collection, not only in numbers but also the visual evidence in the manuscripts," Blessing said. "It's very rare for an art museum to mount an exhibition of literary manuscripts. Usually manuscripts are just boring pages of text, but Tolkien's have small sketches, maps and charts, all showing the intricateness of his creative process."
The Tolkien exhibition was created to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the publication of "The Lord of the Rings."
The exhibition's grand opening coincided with a Tolkien conference on campus, which featured 20 Tolkien scholars from all over the United States and Europe.
Each scholar presented a research paper highlighting different aspects of Tolkien's life and career. Blessing said the Marquette University Press is planning to publish all 20 papers by the year's end.
"I've met a lot of passionate Tolkien fans," Blessing said. "They say that out of all the fantasy novels they've read, the world Tolkien has created in his is the most complete."
The popularity of Tolkien's name alone has attracted a number of students and faculty to the exhibit as well as members of the Milwaukee community.
"I hesitate in saying it's been more popular than our other exhibitions," said Lynne Shumow, the museum's curator of education. "It's been really busy, especially now with the end in sight. More and more people have been calling and trying to see the exhibition while they still can."
Blessing attributes Tolkien's popularity to the success of the three "The Lord of the Rings" films, which Blessing feels introduced the author's work to a new generation.
"This exhibition has been a great chance for people who love the movies or books to see these rare manuscripts," said College of Arts & Sciences freshman Phil Babler, a student worker at the museum.
This article appeared in The Marquette Tribune on Jan. 20 2005.