The last remaining archive of material relating to the work of Christy Brown will stay in Ireland.
The collection was bought by the National Library of Ireland and the Little Museum of Dublin at an auction in London today for more than €42,000.
The archive includes previously unseen sketches, paintings and unpublished poems as well as private letters.
The 43 letters run from 1945 to 1976, five years before his death and are said to include his most personal thoughts and observations.