Library guides / Biblioteekgidse: Special Collections: Rare Books

About Rare Books

A collection of valuable and rare books on a wide range of subjects – a treasure trove of curiosities in print.

Books, rare and unique in terms of scarcity, age, value, physical appearance and subject matter are collected.

The collection preserves books dating from the 15th century up to the present day on a variety of subjects, including art, the sciences, religion, history, literature and popular culture.

The Rare Books section was established in the late 1960s to provide for the safekeeping of valuable art books and other rare materials.

When the University acquired the extensive library of the late Commander Michael Scott the collection was enriched by many first editions, leather-bound volumes and other treasures.

Book of the Month

Visco Fabrics by Gerards, Roger, editor. Sho, Suze May, editor. Forest-Flier, Nancy, editor, translator.
Call Number: BV 1 677 VLI
ISBN: 9789491444005
Publication Date: 2012

Prefixes used at Special Collections (Rare Books Section)

BV - Rare books (Beskermde Versameling)

K1 - Kruger: Prize winners

K2 - Kruger: Fiction

K3 - Kruger: Afrikaans en die Klassieke

K4 - Kruger: Text books

BV1 - Art literature

BV2 - South African literature

BV3 - School literature

BV4 - Children's literature

BVpam - African languages

Collection of the month (Michael Scott Collection)

Michael Scott started his collection when he was still a child, he continued to extend his already considerable collection of books. Scott travelled extensively, especially in Europe. On these travels he frequently added to his collections, having contact with antiquarian booksellers in England and on the Continent. After his move from Fish Hoek to Montagu he devoted most of his life to his library. He died in Cape Town on 1 January 1976. The Scott collection was acquired by the University in 1976 his entire collection of books and records was purchased by the University of Stellenbosch.