Special Collections and Archives Division

General Rare Books

Our general rare book collection houses materials considered too valuable or fragile for the main library stacks. These volumes include:

• Books dating from the 15th and 16th centuries
• Limited editions
• First editions
• Signed copies This diverse collection spans multiple subjects and continues to grow.

Dr. Michael Collection Notable holdings from this significant collection include:

• Samuel Johnson's Dictionary (1755) - two-volume edition, professionally rebound
• Poems of the Old South (1879) - featuring works by:
  • Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
  • Oliver Wendell Holmes
  • Julia Ward Howe
  • Edward Everett Hale

Search the titles in the Rare Books Collection

View the Rare Books Digital Collections in the Library Catalog

History of the Book Collection

This collection showcases the evolution of bookmaking as an art form, from illuminated manuscripts to modern private press editions. Notable examples include:

• Hevres Nouvellles Tirées de la Sainte Ecriture (c.1720) - Louis Senault
  A French Book of Hours honoring Saint Roch, possibly created during the 1720 Marseilles plague outbreak.
• Juvenalis. Persius (1801) - Decimus Junius Juvénal
  Part of the Augustinian revival, featuring Roman satires in acrostic form.
• The Pleasures of Reason (1796) - Robert Gillet
  An 18th-century conduct manual offering guidance for young ladies.
• La Corbeillie de Fruits (c.1815-1821) - Charles Malo
  An illustrated guide to 11 fruits with colored engravings.
• The English Bijou Almanac (1836)
  A miniature book featuring engraved portraits, poetry by L.E. Landon, and royal family listings.
• Specimens of the Early English Poets (1790) - Edited by George Ellis
  Notable for its fore-edge painting, visible when pages are fanned.