Rare Printed Collections

Maps, classified separately within the RBMSCL Map Collection, some dating as early as the 17th Century

The Canovas del Castillo Collection, purchased from the National Library of Madrid, containing rare books from the 16th century onwards.

The Perez de Velasco Collection is detailed in the Catálogo de la Biblioteca Peruana, Propiedad de Dr. Francisco Pérez de Velasco. Lima: Libreria e Imprenta Gil, 1918. (RBMSCL Biblio P438). Among these titles are Spanish, Portuguese, and Latin American rare books, including a collection of travel books by 18th– and 19th–century European travelers to Peru and Ecuador. A number of these books are displayed in the Biddle Room, while others are shelved in the RBMSCL stacks.

Laws, Statutes, etc.: legal materials, including bound volumes and pamphlets detailing Spanish laws, many of which pertained to Spain's colonies, dating from 1623–1833. Specific items may be identified through author, title, or subject searches in the DRA. A collection of Spanish laws from 1721–1836 bears the D-4 Pam designation. Comprised of approximately 800 pieces, these include cedulas, other orders, decrees, resolutions, sanctions, etc., chiefly royal, from the last half of Philip V's reign to the early years of Isabella II's reign.