About Us


The American Museum of Natural History’s Gottesman Research Library is dedicated to preserving and providing access to records that document the science, public education, and history of the Museum. These collections yield unparalleled documentary evidence of the Museum’s over 150-year history and will continue to evolve and grow along with the institution.


Digital Collections, the Museum’s Digital Asset Management System (DAMS), works within the Gottesman Research Library’s suite of web applications and databases. The DAMS bolsters cross-departmental Collection Management Systems (CMS) to empower users with enhanced access to the Museum’s resources for the advancement of scholarship and discovery. Support for Digital Collections is provided by the Leon Levy Foundation as part of the three-year Shelby White and Leon Levy Archive Initiative (2020-2023) to promote evolution, transformation, and access to the Museum Archives collections.


Digital Collections presents a unique environment to discover, explore, and virtually experience digitized and born-digital assets  from  the Gottesman Research Library’s Rare Book Collection and Museum Archives, as well as from other Museum Departments. Within these collections, users will find photographic imagery, moving pictures, sound recordings, rare book illustrations, manuscripts, original art, Museum memorabilia, and other archival holdings. Users can also discover licensable material beyond the Gottesman Research Library’s collections, such as traveling exhibitions.


Statement Regarding Original Content 


The Gottesman Research Library recognizes that Digital Collections users may discover offensive and pseudoscientific content which espouses beliefs that some scholars accepted in the past. We struggle today to reckon with handling the research product of these views. We do not condone these misconceptions: they were wrong then and they are still wrong now. Yet we do want to acknowledge them, so as not to erase the more painful and ugly parts of our shared scientific history. We therefore try to present content here as it was created, for scholarly research purposes and to promote critical thinking.


Content is restricted if it depicts culturally sensitive subject matter but may be viewed with approval of the archivists. Please fill out the form to Request Access to the Museum Archives to view restricted material. Through collaboration with the Museum’s Scientific Departments, we strive to identify all such material. We also continually work to ensure that outdated and offensive cultural terminology in our repository’s descriptive records is updated with current and appropriate language. Although these processes are in place, inappropriate content or terms may still exist in Digital Collections, and we apologize.


Images from Digital Collections may not be published, displayed, or transmitted in any way without permission from the American Museum of Natural History. Certain materials may be protected by copyright, trademark, or related interests not owned by the American Museum of Natural History. Responsibility for obtaining all permissions as may be necessary rest with the user.


Please contact [email protected] with any concerns, questions or take down requests.   


Digital Asset Management (DAM) by Orange Logic