Finding and Requesting Material
To search all Special Collections items (rare books, archival collections, sales catalogs, audio visual material), conduct a search in the Library Catalog.
To search across all Special Collections finding aids, conduct a search in the Research Collections interface.
Please see the instructions for requesting materials in the Library Catalog.
Making a Research Appointment to Consult Special Collections Material
Special Collections material must be consulted by appointment in the Special Collections Reading Room.
To make an appointment contact the Reference Desk in person on the Plaza Level, call 310-440-7390, or email reference@getty.edu.
While the Reference email is monitored daily, it is often faster to call or stop by the Reference Desk. The desk is open Monday – Friday, 9:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
We suggest making your appointments well in advance. Seating is very limited and there may not be seat availability during the last weeks or days of your stay.
Hours and paging times
The Special Collections Reading Room is open Monday through Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m..
Reading Room staff page material daily at 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. Requests submitted after these times will be retrieved at the next paging period. Retrieved material will be accessible by 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. daily.
In some cases, item retrieval may be delayed due to material or storage conditions, item availability, or other issues. Reading Room staff will notify the requester of any such delays.
More information about Special Collections policies is available on the library's website.