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Pictured: Sam Johnston, manager of the archives. Sam is pictured with boxes from the archive marked TH. He is holding on of Hardy's books featuring photos of Dorset. Sam said: "This collection is the jewel in Dorset's heritage crown and it is on the UNESCO list along with the Magna Carta and Domesday book.

Steps are underway to make the world's largest collection of Thomas Hardy material available to the public for the first time.

The Mayor of Casterbridge writer's letters, drawings and books, many previously unseen, have been kept in pristine condition away from the public gaze.

The treasure trove has been preserved in over 150 boxes by Dorset History Museum, in Dorchester, since the death of Hardy's second wife, Florence, in 1937.

Now, a project called Unlocking Thomas Hardy, organised by the Dorset Archives Trust, is trying to raise £60,000 to make the archive available to view online.

Previously, the archive has only been available to specialists who could ask to view specific pieces in it.