Accessing our collections

https://images.prismic.io/wellcomecollection/75384db6-45f1-4153-a6a4-f8d876569d6d_EP_000041_007_Full.jpg?rect=-4%2C0%2C4000%2C2670&w=4000&h=2670?auto=compress,format

https://images.prismic.io/wellcomecollection/75384db6-45f1-4153-a6a4-f8d876569d6d_EP_000041_007_Full.jpg?auto=compress,format&rect=0,169,4000,2250&w=3200&h=1800

https://images.prismic.io/wellcomecollection/75384db6-45f1-4153-a6a4-f8d876569d6d_EP_000041_007_Full.jpg?auto=compress,format&rect=0,533,4000,1875&w=3200&h=1500

https://images.prismic.io/wellcomecollection/75384db6-45f1-4153-a6a4-f8d876569d6d_EP_000041_007_Full.jpg?auto=compress,format&rect=858,0,2670,2670&w=3200&h=3200

Wellcome Collection, library stacks

Our collections are located in the library at Wellcome Collection and are on display at the Science Museum in London. You’ll also find thousands of digitised items from our collections online. 

The library at Wellcome Collection houses many of our collections, including:

pictures (paintings, prints and photographs) 

You can find information about all the items in these collections by searching our catalogue. Some of them are available to browse on the shelves in the library, but most of our library collections are in stores and have to be requested in advance. 

Requesting an item to view in the library

You can request stores items to view in the library  through our catalogue, but you’ll need to get library membership first. To ensure that items are available to view when you visit, you’ll need to request them at least 24 hours in advance. If you need to see more closed-store items while you are at the library, please speak to us about your options.

Thousands of items from our collections have been digitised, and copies are freely accessible online. Our digital collections cover a wide variety of topics, and are particularly strong in the areas of mental health, sex and sexual health, genetics, public health, and 19th-century books.  

If you’re a member of the library, you also have access to many of our our subscription databases and resources with your library card.

Digitised materials from our collections can be accessed and downloaded for use under a variety of Creative Commons non-commercial, attribution and Public Domain licences, depending on the material. 

You can find all our digital items in the catalogue. An option to limit your search to online material appears once you have entered a search term. You can also search for digital images in the ‘Images’ tab on the catalogue. 

You can access both our catalogue data and digitised items through our open APIs. Find out more on our developers’ site.

Objects from our collections are on display throughout the Wellcome Collection building and in our exhibitions. But many of the thousands of historical objects collected by Henry Wellcome and his staff are on permanent loan to the Science Museum in London. Several hundred of these are on display in Medicine: The Wellcome Galleries, a permanent exhibition at the museum.  

You can find out more about the objects held by the Science Museum by searching the Science Museum catalogue.  

Galleries and Reading Room

Library

Shop

Café

We’re undertaking some research with website visitors to learn more about how people find access-related information provided by museums. This survey shouldn't take longer than 10 minutes to complete. Thank you for your time!