The Field Museum Chicago is not only a prime destination for fun, it is also an invaluable research resource. The Museum’s Library Reading Room is open to both visiting scholars and the general public, which means that even tourists can take advantage of this amazing collection.
The Field Museum’s library dates back to 1894, when books were transferred from the departments of the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893. The archives are full of administrative museum records, architecture information and scientific papers by Museum staff. The collection is comprised of over 1,800 linear feet of paper material and the Museum’s original motion picture films. The library also includes items from Berthold Laufer, curator of Asian Anthropology from 1908 to 1934. During his time at the Field Museum, Laufer made significant contributions to the collections of both Anthropology and the Library.
The Library of the Field Museum of Natural History also has an extensive Photo Archives collection. Made up of over 300,000 images, the Photo Archives include images from the areas of anthropology, zoology, botany and geology.
In the Mary W. Runnells Rare Book Room, you’ll find 7,500 volumes and 3,000 original literary works. The books here have been collected from around the world over the past century and include personal possessions of past Museum researchers. The books of the Rare Book Room cover everything from natural history to travel to exploration and culture. The Museum prides itself on having a first edition version of John Audobon’s The Birds of America, as well as unpublished watercolors by Charles Belanger and original letters from Charles Darwin.
The Rare Book Room also includes rare original artwork. The collection includes sketches and paintings by Louis Agassiz Fuertes, George Miksch Sutton and Christophe-Paulin de la Poix. There are several volumes of illustrations of insects, containing over 1,000 drawings of species around the world.
The Field Museum Library’s Reading Room is open between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. It is recommended that you make an appointment in advance to view the collection, which you can do online.
With so much to do at the Field Museum in Chicago, you’ll definitely want to save time for a full day visit. Grab a Chicago City Pass and get ready to learn, discover and explore!
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