The Rijksmuseum Research Library and Print Room have a shared reading room. Here visitors can request and study prints, drawings, photographs, albums and similar items from the Print Room and books, auction catalogues, periodicals, and other publications from the Rijksmuseum Research Library.
Reading room
The reading room contains a large collection of art historical and historical reference books and collection catalogues for visitors to consult. The recent issues of selected current periodicals are also available for reference purposes. A number of computers with internet access can be used by researchers free of charge. These not only give users access to the web catalogue and web browsers, but also enable them to consult a number of specialized databases. There is wireless internet access in the reading room.
A member of staff will be on hand to answer questions about the collections or to provide assistance in searching for information. At the desk you can ask any questions you might have and request material from the depots. Our staff will bring any such material to the reading room for you.
External visitors are not permitted to borrow books or periodicals. On request, photocopies and scans can be made for a small charge. Items which can be easily damaged may only be scanned. Some parts of the collection, such as letters, can only be viewed on microfiche. It is possible to obtain printouts of this material.
Visitors do not need to make an appointment, unless they wish to consult rare or easily damaged works. However, they are required to provide valid proof of identification and to undergo a one-off registration process. For each subsequent visit, they are required to sign the guestbook. To request artworks on paper, visitors must be over 16. Each object may only be studied by a maximum of two persons.