Rare Book Room Collection

The Discovery Fund Rare Book Room includes an exceptional collection of books and limited-edition items, some of which were published over 200 years ago and are fragile, scarce, or valuable. Many of the volumes from the 16th and 17th centuries represent an era of the unfolding of botany and horticulture and include medieval arts and crafts of medicine and agriculture, classic herbals, Materia Medica, and specialized books on the art of perfumery. The great explorers and their voyages and expeditions were of this period and the Rare Book Room includes many volumes on these subjects.