Book returned to library 150 years late: the story behind the fine
Ross Simmons discovered the book "Antiquities of Athens" inside a tea chest hidden within a sealed fireplace during renovations at his home in Kiama, Australia. It is believed the book was originally borrowed by his great-great-grandfather, John, who owned the property at the time.
A book on Greek antiquities has been returned to a public library in Australia after a delay of approximately 150 years. The volume was water-damaged after being trapped for decades inside a sealed fireplace. While the calculated late fee stands at roughly 20,000 dollars, it will clearly not be collected.
The book was returned to the library in the coastal town of Kiama by local resident Ross Simmons, who discovered it during recent home renovations. Michelle Hudson, the library director, noted that they had never received an item of such age. "I follow many libraries on social media, and often things are returned that might be 30 or 40 years old when people are clearing out estates, but this is unprecedented," she said.
Simmons told the AP news agency that he assumes the book was borrowed by his great-great-grandfather, John Simmons, who owned the house at the time. "I am making an assumption," he explained. "He lived in the cottage back then, and his children were likely too young to borrow books themselves."
The library opened in 1872, and the book, "Antiquities of Athens," published in 1858, was marked as item number 506 in the original collection of about 1,000 books. Hudson suspects the volume was lost shortly after the library opened. The late fee of approximately 28,000 Australian dollars (about 19,500 US dollars) was calculated by adjusting for inflation based on the original fine of three pence per week, which was printed on the inside cover alongside the 1872 regulations.
However, Hudson noted that borrower records from the 1870s have been lost. "Unfortunately, we have a missing link. There is nothing in the book that tells us who the last borrower was," she said. The library's rules at the time required patrons to return books and pay any outstanding fines before borrowing new ones, which may explain why it was never returned.
Simmons, whose ancestors were English immigrants and members of the Kiama municipal council, said he had no idea why the book was kept. The 77-year-old admitted he wasn't worried about facing an angry librarian over the family debt: "I've spent a whole life dealing with angry customers. You just hold your ground and tell them, 'Do the worst you can.'"
The returned book will now be displayed in the library's local history collection. "We are not going to allow it to go out again. We don't want to wait another 150 years for it to be returned," Hudson said.
