Special Collections

From its anonymous debut to a brief adventure in the U of A Library’s open stacks, we trace the history of a first edition that remains one of the most-requested books in Bruce Peel Special Collections. Read the full story originally published in The Quad on January 22, 2026 By Adrianna MacPherson

Every year, the University of Alberta confers honorary degrees to honour extraordinary achievement. This November, Dr Fred Van Goor will walk the stage to receive an Honorary Doctor of Science for a breakthrough in the treatment of cystic fibrosis. In addition to the official ceremony, he will be honoured with the acquisition of a rare book selected in his name. This book will become a permanent part of the Honorary Degree Books…

To mark Indigenous History Month, we are shining a spotlight on our Indigenous Healing Collection situated on the main floor of the Geoffrey + Robyn Sperber Health Sciences Library. This collection encompasses works about the peoples of the land now known as Canada, as well as those from regions where Indigenous cultures were overshadowed by processes like colonization. There is more information about the scope and focus of the Indigenous Healing Collection…

À l’occasion du Mois de l’histoire autochtone, nous mettons en lumière notre collection sur les méthodes de guérison autochtones, située au rez-de-chaussée de la bibliothèque des sciences de la santé Geoffrey + Robyn Sperber. Cette collection comprend des ouvrages sur les peuples du territoire aujourd’hui connu sous le nom de Canada, ainsi que des ouvrages provenant de régions où les cultures autochtones ont été éclipsées par des processus tels que la colonisation.…

The University of Alberta Archives website has been overhauled and redesigned. It’s looking fabulous, if we do say so ourselves! With the new website, users will be able to: easily search the archives collection from the homepage search bar, read FAQs to help you prepare for a visit to the archive, and discover the Archives Digital Collections hosted on ERA (UAlberta’s digital repository) and the Internet Archive. We hope you enjoy the…

Last month, in honour of Pride Week 2020, we got together at the Digital Scholarship Centre to talk about Gender & Sexuality Primary Resource collections. Now that most of us are hunkering down to do research at home, we wanted to share those collections online! In the last few decades, research into LGBTQ2S+ studies have grown exponentially. As a result, there are growing numbers of projects which aim to collect materials that…

It is amazing to imagine, but even in the 21st century, there is a book written in a language and script that scholars cannot understand. The Voynitch manuscript is a handwritten illustrated book, dated to the early 1400s. Named for Wilfred Voynitch, a book dealer who acquired the book from Jesuits priests in the early 20th century, the book is now owned by the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale. The manuscript…

Bruce Peel Special Collections received wonderful news that judges of the annual University & College Designers Association (UCDA) Design Competition have chosen three of the Peel library’s recently published exhibition catalogues for an Award of Excellence. The judges evaluated 1,060 print and digital entries for excellence in design, illustration, concept, typography, printing, and overall message; and in this year’s competition, they awarded 5 Gold Awards, 12 Silver Awards, and 198 Awards of…