Q. What is the rare book collection and how can I use it?

The Hubbard Library Rare Book Collection is a subset of the Archives and Special Collection Department. The works in our rare book collection are housed in a secure holding location of the library, and all of our processed rare books are searchable through the Fuller Library catalog.

Our rare book collection of over 2,100 titles predominately features pre-19th and early 19 century works in the fields of theology, biblical studies, and Church History. The collection specifically includes: periodical Christian society publications and dictionaries (74), a good balance of Old and New Testament studies (90 & 97 respectively), many works of doctrinal (226) and practical (185) theology, and a large representation of historic Anglican (140) and Catholic (224) works, along with notable holdings from Presbyterian/Reformed (46)  and Methodist/Congregationalist (79) denominations.

The collection includes works in 18 different languages. In descending order, the languages with five or more works in the collection are as follows: English (1,481), Latin (234), Spanish (211), German (167), Italian (127), French (47), Dutch (9), and Hebrew (7). 

Click here to see a featured list of rare book titles including our oldest published work, a 1525 commentary by Joachim of Fiore (one of twenty-five 16th century works in the collection). You can also search within Fuller's pre-1851 antiquarian special collections by placing your search before the existing search terms.

Use of the rare book collection is by appointment only, subject to the approval and supervision of the Fuller Seminary Archivist. Please click here to schedule an appointment (must be at least one week in advance).