A RARE book business in Wem says its entire stock of antiquarian titles was lost in the devastating fire at a town business park on Wednesday.

Cosmo Books Antiquarian Articles & Journals posted on its website on Thursday that it would be closed because of the blaze in the early hours of Wednesday morning, which fire officers now say was caused by arsonists.

The company, which offers pamphlets and articles taken from journals, reviews and rare books from the 18th to 20th century, said the fire had destroyed its entire stock.

The post said: "In the early hours of Wednesday, October 5 Cosmo Books was entirely destroyed in a fire, from an incident at a neighbouring unit behind us.

"Our entire stock of about 170,000 titles has been lost, and nothing can be salvaged from the destruction.

"We are therefore closed for business for the foreseeable future.

"We will update the website when we know more of our future plans.

"Right now myself, Samantha and Amanda are simply too stunned to think it all through."

According to its website, Cosmo held articles from publications from the Edinburgh Review, the Quarterly Review, the Dublin Review, and Acts of Parliament, and the Philosophical Transactions of The Royal Society.

Their stock also contained journals from a wide range of subjects, including architecture, sport, history, engineering, and more.