Additional Services for Met Staff
Are you a new or current Met Staff member? Please email us to request a library orientation and tour or a refresher on using the library.
By completing the registration form, you agree to:
- Adhere to all Watson Library policies and procedures, including hours of access.
- Check out all library books at the Watson Library Circulation Desk before taking them to your office or carrel.
- Do not remove Watson Library materials from the Museum building.
- 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.
- Make all books checked out in your name available for recall if requested by another Museum staff member with sign out privileges.
- Participate in a library orientation if you are to have Stacks Privileges.
- 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
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. 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.
If you receive a recall notice for an item that is checked out to you, please promptly return the item so that your colleague may consult it. You can reply to the email notice to request that the book be picked up. You can also state if you would like the book returned to you. We understand that some publications may be key to a current project, and we can minimize the amount of time a book is recalled from you.
For any recall questions, or if you need an urgent recall for a one-day loan, please email amy.hamilton@metmuseum.org.
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
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 staff, volunteer tour guides, interns, and fellows can access the majority of the library's subscription-based or purchased electronic resources such as databases, e-books, and electronic periodicals from any computer with an internet connection outside the Museum.
When you attempt to access the applicable content remotely, you will be prompted to enter your Museum network credentials. If you are a current Museum staff member, volunteer, tour guide, intern, or fellow and do not have a Museum network account, please contact Watson Library at watson.library@metmuseum.org.
For more detailed instruction on how to search and browse for electronic materials and/or how to access them remotely, please review our online tutorial. Please note that a few of the library's electronic resources cannot be accessed remotely due to license or other access restrictions.