Additional Services for Met Staff

By completing the registration form, you agree to:

1. Adhere to all Watson Library policies and procedures, including hours of access.
2. Check out all library books at the Watson Library Circulation Desk before taking them to your office or carrel.
3. Do not remove Watson Library materials from the Museum building.
4. Be responsible for all books checked out in your name (by you or your deputy borrower) until they are returned to the library and agree to reimburse Watson Library for all materials missing or not returned as determined by Watson Library staff.
5. Make all books checked out in your name available for recall if requested by another Museum staff member with sign out privileges.
6. Participate in a library orientation if you are to have Stacks Privileges.
7. Handle all library books with care.

The Watson Library stacks are open to authorized research staff only.

If you have not been approved for stacks privileges:

You may have materials paged from the stacks. You can pick up your paged items in the Reference Room once your are notified via email that they are available. For staff with sign-out privileges, items will be delivered to your department.

If you have been approved for stacks privileges:

You may use the Watson Library stacks during regular stacks hours. A stacks orientation from a library staff member is required before using the stacks. To schedule an orientation, please email watson.library@metmuseum.org.

Watson Library Interlibrary Services supports the research activities of Metropolitan Museum of Art staff by obtaining books, print or electronic copies of journal articles, and other texts that are not available from the Museum's libraries.

Met staff and volunteers can click here to login or create an account.

Please consult our Borrowing FAQ, which covers questions you may have regarding interlibrary loans and photocopies.

Contact Information

Interlibrary Services
Thomas J. Watson Library
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
1000 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10028

(212) 396-5221

interlibrary.services@metmuseum.org

Study carrels are assigned to visiting Fellows, curators and researchers. For questions and concerns, please contact Jessica Ranne Cardona at Jessica.RanneCardona@metmuseum.org.

A Deputy Borrower may borrow Watson Library materials on behalf of a Museum staff member. This status is appropriate for interns, volunteers, and assistants who borrow books for full-time permanent Museum staff. You may be a Deputy Borrower for someone else and also have checkout privileges in your own name.

Please inform the Circulation Desk that you are a Deputy Borrower when checking out materials for another person. If you are requesting materials from Watsonline, you must request with the last name and Museum ID number of the staff member for whom you are borrowing.

Please email the Watson Library Circulation Desk at circ01@metmuseum.org to designate someone as a Deputy Borrower. 

Library materials that are checked out to Museum staff will be recalled if requested by another staff member, and there are no other copies available. Books checked out to Museum staff usually take 48 hours to retrieve, and some materials may not be available for recall. If you wish to recall an item with a "Checked Out" status in Watsonline, you must be a Museum staff member with sign-out privileges.

Follow these instructions to place the recall:

1. When you find a record in Watsonline for an item that is checked out, click the Request or Recall button at the top of the screen.
2. Log in with your last name and Museum ID number.
3. You will receive a confirmation message on the screen. A notice will be sent to the patron who has the item checked out, requesting that it be returned. You will be notified by email when the item is available to be picked up at Watson or delivered to you.
4. If you receive a notice that an item has been recalled for another Museum staff member to use, please return the item to Watson or reply to the email notice indicating that you would like the item picked up. If you would like the item returned to you, simply indicate this in a reply to the email notice. You will be notified when the book becomes available. If you have any questions, email amy.hamilton@metmuseum.org.
5. If you need an urgent recall for a one-day loan, email amy.hamilton@metmuseum.org with the citation.

Columbia University Libraries

The Museum's professional research staff may obtain access to Columbia's libraries and check books out of those that have circulating collections. Please note that access varies by each individual library and the Columbia University Library Information Office can answer specific questions about access to each of their libraries. To apply for Columbia library access, please contact Dana Keith, x3983, dana.keith@metmuseum.org.

Please note: Columbia charges $20.00 to issue the photo ID which is part of the registration process. Acceptable forms of payment are Visa, MasterCard, Discover, or personal check (no cash). 

New York University Libraries

Bobst Library

The Museum's professional research staff may use Bobst Library and can apply for a semester-long card (current semester ends August 31, 2024) to use materials on site (no borrowing privileges).  

If you would like to use Bobst Library, please begin the process by filling out this pre-registration form. Please plan to register at least one to two business days before your planned visit. The library office will contact you when you’ve been registered to access Bobst Library. You will need to show your Met Staff ID and confirmation email from Bobst Library to the Campus Safety desk each time you visit the library.   

Institute for the Study of the Ancient World (ISAW) Library

The Museum's professional research staff may consult library materials in the ISAW Library. Please email isaw-library@nyu.edu in advance to schedule a visit.

All current Museum research staff and Volunteer Guides can access the majority of the library’s subscription databases remotely. This means that you can access our online resources from any computer with an internet connection from outside the Museum.

Remote Access Instructions:

1. Connect to the Lita Annenberg & Joseph H. Hazen Center for Electronic Information Resources page.
2. Browse or search for the name of the electronic resource or database, e.g. JSTOR. (Databases also may be found via keyword or title search in Watsonline.)
3. In the resource record, click on the hyperlink adjacent to "Available Online:" or on the title.
4. You will be prompted to log in with your Museum network account credentials.
5. You will then be able to browse and search within the electronic resource.
6. Please note that a few of the library’s electronic resources cannot be accessed remotely due to license agreements, or the fact that they require a password.

An illustrated guide to accessing electronic resources is available here.  

If you need remote access and do not have a Museum network account, please contact Watson Library at watson.library@metmuseum.org.