Australian library receives book 150 years overdue

A public library in Kiama, Australia, received a book with an estimated 150-year overdue period. The book, "Antiquities of Athens," published in 1858, was returned last week by a man who discovered it in a bricked-up tea box within a sealed fireplace during renovations at his home.

"We've never had anything this old returned," said Michelle Hudson, director of the Kiama Library. She noted that while other libraries sometimes receive old items from estates, this return was exceptionally ancient. The man who found the book did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

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We've never had anything this old returned.

Hudson calculated the late fee, considering inflation, would be around 28,000 Australian dollars ($19,500). This figure is based on the British rate of three pence per week, printed inside the book's cover alongside library rules from when it opened in 1872. However, tracking the original borrower is impossible as the library's 1870s borrowing records are lost.

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Unfortunately, we're missing a link. There's nothing in the book to tell us who the last borrower was.

"Unfortunately, we're missing a link. There's nothing in the book to tell us who the last borrower was," Hudson stated. The 1870s rules also stipulated that a book had to be returned and late fees paid before another could be borrowed, which Hudson speculated might be why it was never returned. Other outdated rules from the era included allowing households to borrow up to three books if at least six family members were known to be literate, a requirement no longer in place. Additionally, borrowing was prohibited for individuals arriving at the library "in a state of intoxication," a rule now replaced by a general policy against disruptive behavior.

The book, showing some water damage from its time in the chimney, was item number 506 in the library's original collection of about 1,000 books. Hudson believes it was lost within a few years of the library's opening. The returned volume will be displayed in the library's local history collection.

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Maybe that's why it was never returned to us.