Desk fragment

This heavily graffitied desk fragment has been preserved from one of the early lecture rooms of Canterbury College, where renowned personalities, including John Angus (Jack) Erskine, James Hight, Ernest Rutherford, and Helen Connon, would have once studied. During the early years of the College, lectures were held in the early hours of the morning and late in the evening. This allowed students access to an education whilst financially supporting themselves and their families by working during the day. Due to the hardship of the time, students typically were studious and always attended their lectures, with John Macmillan Brown commenting that there were rarely any absences during his teaching time. However, Macmillan Brown presented lengthy lectures with some running for almost four hours.

While students were good at attending class, it is likely that after a few hours in the same classroom, some students turned to mind numbing activities such as engraving words and phrases onto their desks. This particular fragment reads, “ALL HOPE ABANDON YE WHO ENTER HERE”. It is an English translation of a Latin verse from Dante’s Divine Comedy (1308-1320), and gives the warning to proceed with caution. The presence of this verse could suggest the lecture room was used for classes related to Classics, History, and English Literature – also known as a Bachelor of Arts and one of the first degrees offered since the establishment of the College. Today, the University of Canterbury offers over 120 qualifications for students, including more than twenty-seven different Bachelor degrees.