Distinctive Collections
At this time, onsite special collections are available for research by appointment for current Columbia faculty, students, and staff. Please contact the relevant special collections repository library to make a research appointment.
Avery Architectural & Fine Arts Library
Located in Avery Hall, the Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library collects books and periodicals in architecture, historic preservation, art history, painting, sculpture, graphic arts, decorative arts, city planning, real estate, and archaeology. The Library contains more than 250,000 volumes and receives approximately 1,500 periodicals.
Contact: avery@library.columbia.edu
Burke Library at Union Theological Seminary
Located on the campus of Union Theological Seminary, the Burke Library is the largest theological library in the western hemisphere, containing rich collections for theological study and research. With holdings of over 700,000 items, the Library is recognized as one of the premier libraries in its field and includes extensive holdings of unique and special materials.
Contact: burke@library.columbia.edu
C.V. Starr East Asian Library
Located in Kent Hall, the C. V. Starr East Asian Library is one of the major collections for the study of East Asia in the United States, with nearly 750,000 volumes of Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Tibetan, Mongol, Manchu, and Western-language materials and over 5,000 periodical titles.
Contact: starr@library.columbia.edu
Rare Book & Manuscript Library
Located in Butler Library, the Rare Book & Manuscript Library is home to many of Columbia's greatest treasures. It contains cuneiform tablets, papyri, ostraca, astronomical and mathematical instruments, maps, works of art, photographs, posters, early printing presses and papermaking equipment, type specimens, sound and moving image recordings, theater set models, puppets, masks, ephemera and memorabilia.
Contact: rbml@library.columbia.edu