Facsimiles

Background

Facsimiles can be fantastic teaching tools and sometimes the best means of introducing students to seminal works. However, these items are often very expensive, and depending on their veracity to the original, can require special housing, shelving, description and care. While the Library does not proactively collect facsimiles of early books and manuscripts, it does welcome faculty-initiated requests for their purchase. Such requests will be thoroughly and judiciously considered within the overall context of resources available for the purchase and administration of rare, unique, and original materials.

Procedure

Faculty who would like to request the purchase of a facsimile should direct their requests to the Director of Special Collections & Archives. Each request should include:

• bibliographic details about the original material the facsimile reproduces
• bibliographic details about which facsimile editions would be acceptable, ideally listed in order of preference
• a short explanation of the teaching need(s) the facsimile would address
• known or anticipated courses in which the object would be used

The Director of Special Collections & Archives will consult with the requesting faculty and research the original and facsimile editions. If the request is approved and a copy is available, the Director will work with the Collections Development librarian to identify funding. If purchased, the Director will be responsible for determining which collection the facsimile is added to and ensuring appropriate housing.