Transfers to Special Collections

The Cooper Square Rare Book Collection grows almost entirely by internal transfer from one collection to another. Items have originated from the archives, from non-circulating collections, and sometimes even the main stacks. Additionally, while the library has received gifts-in-kind that may be eligible for the Special Collection, most items are donated to the Library and only later allotted and transferred to the Special Collections. This page discusses criteria, value, and other considerations of transfers.

The Cooper Union Library’s Special Collections evaluate transfer candidacy upon value metrics. However there are several types of value considered. These include (but are not limited to):

• Monetary Value
• Historical and Intellectual Value
• Pertinence to Cooper Union’s History
• Pertinence to Cooper Union contemporary research and pedagogy
• Academic Interests within the Library

Market Criteria — Monetary Value:

Monetary value is contextual to the current market price of replacing the physical item and/or its content. (Example, if a current textbook is more expensive than a historical version, it probably should be considered of low monetary value.)

We are not appraisers and do must be efficient with/without appraisers for valuation, insurance, and evaluation criteria. Therefore pre-appraisal should be based on:

• Auctions, Sales, ABSA, etc.
• Scarcity and uniqueness can equate to value (first editions, signed by author, rare editions of famous works.)
• RBMS standards for evaluating scarcity (date/place, physical characteristics, etc.)

Historical Value

Subject Specialist knowledge in conjunction with archivists knowledge of Cooper Union to determine historical significance 

Scarcity in this context reveres to significantly limited existence of certain physical or content attributes including:

• Important Discoveries
• Famous Academic Work
• Important scholarship at Cooper Union
• Intellectual or real work with significance to Cooper Union

Hard Lines for Check Criteria

The following criteria is meant to operationalize and give some further guidance for when to consider an item for transfer:

• Printed pre-1900 (particularly pre-1855)
• No copies in Research Library Association of South Manhattan
• Unavailable in any digital form
• Few copies in PALCI
• Few copies in Regional Libraries (NYPL, Columbia, etc.)
• First Editions
• Signed Copies
• Provenance and Ex Libri
• Previously earmarked by a Cooper Union Librarian (primarily Mezzanine and Archives materials)
• Unique Physical Characteristics

When do we consider items for candidacy for transfer?

Cooper Union Library is a small enough collection and has a small enough staff that regular and systematic special collection transfer review is impractical. Therefore the following events will likely trigger consideration for transfer to special collections:

• Circulation/Tech Services Procedures
• Proactive consultation with professionals
• Patron Suggestions
• Weeding
• Gifts
• Items previously designated for special consideration (Mez, Gifts, Archive Collections, Colker, etc.)

Over its 165+ year history former Cooper Union librarians have earmarked materials for special consideration, handling, or future transfer. Until otherwise noted and formalized, all items in this circumstance should be considered "eligible" for special collection accessioning, but should still be evaluated under the following criteria (in no specific order):

• Institutional Value
• Research Value
• Market Value
• Provenance
• Rarity and Scarcity
• Date and Place of Printing
• Physical and Intrinsic qualities
• Condition

Important materials are sometimes identified from the stacks and transferred to this collection. For material to be transferred, it must be 1) valuable, 2) in its original binding or an appropriate early Cooper Union Library binding, and 3) be significant as an artifact.

The following criteria (in no specific order) will be used to evaluate newly earmarked candidates for transfer:

• Market Value
• Rarity and Scarcity
• Date and Place of Printing
• Provenance
• Physical and Intrinsic Qualities
• Research Value
• Institutional Value
• Condition
• Intellectual Significance
• Pedagogical/Educational Significance

Transfer of general stacks of materials to Special Collections is recommended by librarians for a final decision by the Director of the Library.

Based on the collection’s origination, condition will be an incredibly challenging but important variable to consider. Condition should be considered an exclusion criteria for transfer if:

• We are unable to keep, store, or provide access to an item properly. (See donation criteria)
• If the transfer candidacy is primarily based on monetary value and the work’s condition definitively impacts the monetary value to the degree it is of negligible difference to a contemporary replacement copy.

Because of institutional and budgetary constraints, preservation capacity and physical space should be central factors in all collecting decisions. Budget limitations, finite shelving, and the library’s limited expertise and resources for rare book preservation require that each item’s acquisition or retention be weighed against competing spatial needs of students, the library, and the wider institution. (See Special Donation to Other Institution policy [forthcoming].)

Current infrastructure for special book storage is fragmented and incomplete. Four principal locations are available, each with distinct preservation, space, and security constraints. (See Special Books Preservation and Security Analysis [forthcoming].) Collecting and storage decisions must account for the following:

1. Archives: The Archives offer the strongest security and environmental controls: locked access, mediated retrieval, limited traffic, and modest climate regulation. However, available space is extremely limited and cannot be perpetually guaranteed due to ongoing archival growth. As a result, no special books will be permanently housed in the Archives.

2. Mezzanine: The southern mezzanine has historically served as the primary location for special books. It is neither locked nor climate-controlled. While one egress (the spiral staircase) is visible from the reference desk, another (a ladder) is unsupervised. Access to the mezzanine largely mediated and therefore low-traffic. (As a general rule only staff or patrons accompanied by staff are allowed entrance.) Although most existing special book collections are stable in size, the mezzanine has been slated by administration for eventual removal due to structural and architectural concerns. It should therefore be treated as a principal but, only semi-permanent storage location.

3. Work Room Cabinets: The north wall of the workroom contains cabinet shelving historically used for “closed stack” materials—items of value or security concern that do not require supervised use. Access is mediated, and staff presence in the workroom during open hours provides general oversight. Traffic is moderate. These cabinets are not climate-controlled and were not designed for preservation, making them environmentally risky for special materials. Space is limited, and any expansion requires relocating existing closed-stack holdings.

4. Work Room Stacks: The south wall of the workroom holds traditional metal stacks used for course reserves, DVDs, and supply storage. Access is mediated, and staff oversight is consistent during open hours. However, the area is an environmental hazard: high-traffic, lacks climate control, and is adjacent to a heavily used kitchenette. Space is limited.

5. Entry Exhibit Display: East of the library’s entry ramp, the Hejduk-designed enclave has traditionally been used for exhibitions and displays. The area consists of open shelving and sits directly along the path to a circuit breaker accessed at least twice daily, and intermittently by Buildings & Grounds for maintenance. Although the space is fully open to patrons—and therefore environmentally and security-vulnerable—it remains in direct line of sight of the staffed desk and is continuously monitored during open hours. The area is small and may hold varying amounts of material at different times. While it may temporarily house special books, it should be considered, at best, a semi-permanent storage location.