In 2020, UiA was awarded one of Europe's largest collections of erotic literature. The collection was owned by the late Cupido editor Terje Gammelsrud, who died in 2017. Since the award, UiA's library has been working to catalogue and review the contents of the collection, and it now has its own room in the library.
"This is a unique collection, for us as academics and for the general public. The collection consists of erotic literature in Norwegian, Danish, English and French, from the 19th century and up to the present day," says Tor-Ivar Karlsen.
"A rich tradition"
He is a professor in the Department of Psychosocial Health and teaches sexology among other subjects. UiA has been training clinical sexologists for over 20 years, and Karlsen hopes that this new collection will provide students with a better understanding of the field.
"Erotic literature is primarily found online, but there is a rich tradition that we now can access in physical format. Here, you can immerse yourself in the subject academically and get a unique opportunity to see the history in this literature. The collection will also be of great interest to literary historians," says Karlsen.
Donated to UiA
The collection was previously held in Cupido's offices but was donated to UiA after the death of editor Terje Gammelsrud. He was an avid collector of erotic literature, and the collection includes comics, erotic novels and non-fiction books.
"This collection will help break down prejudices against sexuality. It is great that UiA as a university is investing in this and making this part of literary history available to everyone," says Karlsen.