"The Libraries' physical collections comprise 1.5 million books and manuscripts, along with over 400,000 pieces of ephemera, microfilm, photo collections and a/v material, housed in over 20 locations in Washington, Maryland, New York, and Panama. Some of those collections are available via  inter-library loan request through your local public, school, or organizational library. If you're with an organization interested in using one of our collections items in an exhibition, please see Exhibition Loan Services.

"Our digital collections include over 27,000 digitized books and manuscripts (available on our site and at the Biodiversity Heritage Library) as well as photo and illustration collections, seed catalogs, trade literature, and much more."  

Image Gallery

Explore nearly 20,000 images from our illustrated rare books, photograph collections, and past exhibitions.

Incunabula in the Dibner Library of the History of Science and Technology

An index to the earliest books printed with movable type held by the Libraries. Some entries have associated images.

Index Animalium

Compiled over 43 years by one man this index to every living animal discovered between 1758 and 1850 is still considered the essential reference for zoologists and paleontologists.

Instruments for Science

A collection of uniquely valuable trade literature that tells the history of 19th c. science through instrument catalogs.

Scientific Identity: Portraits from the Dibner Library of the History of Science and Technology

Portraits of scientists, engineers, and inventors collected by Bern Dibner to complement he thousands of scientific books and manuscripts in the library he founded.

Taxonomic Literature 2 online

Online version of Taxonomic Literature 2, the premier guide to the literature of systematic botany.

United States Exploring Expedition

After four years at sea, the U.S. Exploring Expedition returned with a bounty of data, specimens and artifacts that would later come to the Smithsonian.