Stolen! Theft in the archives

Title: Stolen! Theft in the archives
Description: Did you know there was an attempted burglary of some important anti-fascist documents held at LSE Library? That the classic book On Liberty has two authors, not one? That an important piece of LSE art was stolen?
“Stolen! Theft in the archives” is an upcoming LSE Library exhibition open to all.
Bringing together an international team of curators, we explore theft in different forms: wealth taken by others, ideas obscured by the published record, and robbed legacies. We show how theft shapes what we remember and what we forget. It features stories relating to Harriet Taylor Mill (co-author of On Liberty), documents from the investigation into the murder of socialist MP Giacomo Matteotti, the outcome of archival research by LSE students on Marxism, Hansa Mehta’s possible connection to LSE, the Fabian Society, AI, and more.
Curated by: Hannah Boroudjou, Daniel Brambilla-Payne, Chelsea Collison, Silvia Gallotti, Jo Ellen Jacobs, Niraja Gopal Jayal, Jakob Toet Jorsasl, Wendy Lynwood, Maria Nesheiwat, Aarun Parmar-Cunio, Ellie Potts, Isabella Paterson, Bruno Villalobos-Condezo.
Content: View Content
Contributor: LSE Library
Type: Exhibition
Date: 2026
Subject: Political History; Cultural History; Social History
Period: 20th Century; 21st Century
Geographical Area: Britain and Ireland; Europe

Side by side portraits - on left painting of woman in 19th century - philosopher Harriet Taylor Mill ; on right 20th century black and white photograph of woman - activist Angela Davis ; bottom left text - Stolen! Theft in the archives and exhibition dates 12 Oct to 17 March and daily opening hours 9am - 7pm.