Maltwood, K. E.

Katharine Emma Maltwood was born in Woodford Green, London. Her early aspirations to poetry turned to the graphic arts, finally settling on sculpture. She studied art in Italy and at the Slade School in London under Sir George Frampton. In 1901 she married John Maltwood, whose fortune enabled her to devote her time to art and to build a collection of antiques. From 1911 to 1930 her works were exhibited regularly in London, England. Maltwood was also interested in ancient history and mythology, oriental philosophy, Buddhism, the occult and theosophy. She and her husband travelled extensively in Europe and Asia and purchased antiques on their travels. In 1938, the Maltwoods left England and settled in Victoria, B.C. Maltwood also continued her study of medieval legends and researched the Glastonbury Zodiac, her findings resulting in several books. In 1940, Maltwood was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. After her death the Maltwood's thatched cottage "The Thatch", her antiques collection and her archives were a bequest to the University of Victoria. For a time the University ran "The Thatch", in Royal Oak, as a museum but because environmental controls would have been too costly to retrofit, the University applied to Supreme Court of B.C. to have John Maltwood's will over ridden. They were successful and the University moved the "Maltwood Museum" to the University and sold the house and property. The archives were transferred from the custody of the museum to S.C.