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George Moore has been a “collectable” author from the dawn of his career in the 1870s until the present — 150 years and counting.

Partly this is due to the rarity or scarcity of his numerous publications; partly to his notable association with celebrated writers and artists; and partly to the cultural movements he enhanced in England, Ireland and France during a career spanning half a century. 

Because George Moore is collectable, his tangible legacy has outlived his popularity. While his titles have long fallen off most recommended reading lists of critics and educators, and long been overlooked by publishers of classic literature, his manuscripts, publications, and portraits are to be found in public and private collections worldwide.

Edwin Gilcher spent decades researching Moore’s bibliographical record. His Bibliography of George Moore is published on GMi. But even now, decades after his death, the bibliography is unfinished and still growing. 

Bob Becker and Hal Gerber separately spent years researching Moore’s correspondence. There may be as many as 6,000 extant manuscript letters in the world today, but the number is still being tallied. Letters are still being censused, digitized, transcribed, annotated, and published.

This Collections pillar of GMi complements other pillars: Iconography, Aesthetics, Worlds, Letters, and Bibliography. There you can view digitally curated texts and images. Here, you can locate many of the physical assets from which they’re derived.

Why are collections important in the digital age? Because they add tremendous value. 

As a reader and a scholar you can extract information from digital assets published on GMi, and you can do that more efficiently than any other way. But you cannot fully experience and appreciate a literary legacy without holding paper in your hands or looking at canvas. 

This survey of Collections may help you do just that: access, view, and touch some of the things George Moore created and helped others create.