Rare Books

Dante and the poet Virgil walking through the inferno. From the 1481 Nicholo di Lorenzo edition of the Divine Comedy

The Department of Archives and Special Collections of the Charles Von der Ahe Library houses over 12,000 rare books. The strengths of our premiere book collections include first editions of important English and American literature, works by and about Thomas More and his world, Catholic authors, and materials once owned by early Southern California families. For information about the most notable collections see the List of Collections.

The collections are open by appointment to all interested researchers. For information on making an appointment, please call the department at 310-338-5710; or email the department: Special.Collections@lmu.edu.

Return to Archives and Special Collections home page.