The von Wright and Wittgenstein Archives

A place for research on von Wright and Wittgenstein

The von Wright and Wittgenstein Archives (WWA) in Helsinki contain all the Ludwig Wittgenstein materials collected by his friend, the Finnish philosopher Georg Henrik von Wright, who described his archive as “probably the most comprehensive and well-organized Wittgenstein archive in the world.” The Archives also contain much of von Wright’s correspondence and drafts of his published and unpublished manuscripts. Furthermore, WWA holds an extensive Wittgenstein and von Wright library. It is thus a perfect spot for any Wittgenstein or von Wright-scholar, e.g., for someone interested in investigating the textual and editorial genesis of Wittgenstein’s philosophy. The staff of WWA also provides expertise in locating relevant material, and the WWA is an important research unit involving several cross-disciplinary research projects. Finally, WWA houses some unique memorabilia, such as Wittgenstein’s walking stick, the handkerchief used to cover his face after his death, and von Wright’s travelling typewriter from 1919. The National library of Finland, at a short walking distance from WWA, is the host of a second von Wright archive, containing a large part of his professional and private correspondence, as well as the scientific part of his home library.