Elton Collection

Sir Arthur Elton (1906 - 1973) was one of the early pioneers of documentary film making in the inter-war years and wrote a number of books on technical subjects. During his life he put together an unique collection of paintings, prints, drawings, books and other ephemera relating to the industrial and transport revolution. The Elton Collection was accepted by the Government and allocated in lieu of estate duties and allocated to the Ironbridge Gorge Museum in 1978.

The collection consists of original drawings, paintings, prints (engravings, lithographs, chromolithographs, etchings and mezzotints), books and pamphlets and orther printed ephemera. In addition there are commemorative items in glass and china, supplemented with medals and other small objects.

The strength of the collection lies in the subject area they all have in common. As a result, the Elton Collection is the best visual source of comparative material for the industrial anad technological developments in this country from the seventeenth to the early twentieth centuries.