The Index houses a modest research library of books on medieval manuscripts, architecture, painting, stained glass, sculpture, and other media represented in the archive. It includes art historical and iconographic dictionaries and encyclopedias, major exhibition catalogues of medieval art, publications on medieval history, liturgy, and hagiography, and a full print set of the Acta Sanctorum, as well as all Index publications and conference volumes and major journals such as Gesta (1963–) and Studies in Iconography (1975–). Areas of strength include scholarship on visual cultures of western Europe and Byzantium, with significant holdings in Late Antique, Near Eastern, and Coptic studies. This non-circulating collection is open to browse during the regular hours of the Index of Medieval Art. For a selection of individual titles, please browse the Index Book Finder and consult with staff to find the new location of the desired title in the Index reading room located in Green Hall, 2-C-10.
The Index is also home to a small archive of material relating to the history of the organization and the staff who have worked here. These papers largely cover the formation of the archive, the development of Index cataloging methodology, and records of early digitization during the twentieth century. For more information about these papers, please send us a Research Inquiry using the linked form.
