Ted Hughes: Huddersfield Uni buys former Poet Laureate's rarities

Ted Hughes was born in Mytholmroyd, West Yorkshire, in 1930 and died in 1998

"Rare and valuable" items relating to former Poet Laurate Ted Hughes have been bought by a Yorkshire university.

The collection includes signed first editions and letters written by Mytholmroyd-born Hughes and his first wife Sylvia Plath.

It also includes unseen photographs and the only existing example of a sculpture made by Hughes.

The archive will be housed in the University of Huddersfield's Heritage Quay centre.

The items were collected over the years by the late West Yorkshire poet, who died in 1998, and Ted Hughes expert Mark Hinchliffe.

University of Huddersfield archivist Dr Rebecca Bowd said: "We are thrilled to be able to preserve Mark Hinchliffe's fantastic collection at Heritage Quay where, for the first time, it will be freely accessible to the public.

"The Ted Hughes Archive at Heritage Quay already holds three other Ted Hughes-related deposits: the Donald Crossley Papers, the Christopher Reid Papers and a comprehensive collection of Hughes' fine and small press work."

The new collection "cements Heritage Quay's reputation as a must-visit archive for Ted Hughes scholars worldwide", Dr Bowd added.

The collection contains a sculpture of a panther made by Ted Hughes in the 1960s

The purchase of the collection of more than 170 items cost £103,790, with funding coming from the National Heritage Memorial Fund, the Arts Council England/V&A Purchase Grant Fund, Friends of the National Libraries and Huddersfield University itself.

Heritage Minister Nigel Huddleston said: "It is fitting this extensive Ted Hughes collection has been acquired by the University of Huddersfield in the poet's home county.

"These brilliant works will now be available to academics, students and members of the public, where they will provide endless inspiration and enjoyment for years to come."

Hughes was born in 1930 into a working class family and was appointed Poet Laureate in December 1984, the post he held until his death.

As well as poetry, he also wrote the children's book The Iron Man.