Visiting & using our collections

The Library is open by advance appointment

Following the Government’s planned lifting of lockdown restrictions for libraries on 12th April, the Library is open for research visits on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 11am-1pm and 2-4pm. Please note that advance booking is essential and material must be requested in advance. To book a visit, please email [email protected] with your preferred date, list of material, and preference of morning or afternoon slot. Depending on availability, we may be able to accommodate consecutive slots.

Please note that COVID-19 regulations will be in force, and all visitors must wear masks (unless exempt) and maintain social distancing.

Postal and onsite services have been resumed, but please bear with us, as we have a reduced staff working onsite and requests may take longer than usual. Staff continue to respond to email enquiries sent to libra[email protected]

For information about requesting images and image licences, please see the page on our website for Images & Photocopying.   

How you can visit

We are always delighted to welcome new researchers to the Library & Museum to consult materials that are not available elsewhere, and to help them navigate our archives and collections.

Please tell us about your research, what you wish to see and when you would like to visit. You can search the majority of our collections online, using our catalogues.

For further information, please see our Conditions for Research Access [PDF].

When you can visit

From April 13th onwards, the Library is open Tuesdays and Thursdays, 11pm-1am and 2pm-4pm. Visits must be booked in advance via [email protected].

Access to the Museum is by appointment only from 17th May. Please contact [email protected] to arrange a visit.

How we can help

Engraving by Samuel Lysons and Robert Smirke 1797 of The Orpheus Mosaic at Woodchester

You can contact the Museum ([email protected]) for enquiries about:

• Museum objects
• Paintings

You can contact the Library ([email protected]) for enquiries about:

• Printed materials
• Archives
• Manuscripts
• Prints and drawings

Information on requesting photocopies or scans is available here

You can usually take photographs during your visit (without flash) for private study or reference purposes only, but please ask permission first! The Society can provide high-quality photographs for publication purposes for a fee. You can find more information about requesting images here.