The Smithsonian Collections Search Center is an online catalog containing most of Smithsonian major collections from our museums, archives, libraries, and research units. There are 8.1 million catalog records relating to areas for Art & Design, History & Culture, and Science & Technology with 860,477 images, videos, audio files, podcasts, blog posts and electronic journals.
This catalog is regularly updated as catalog records are being added and revised. For more information about individual collection objects please contact the individual museums, archives or libraries listed below.
The Collection Search Center currently contains collections from the following Smithsonian units:
1000 online records of photographs, paintings, drawings, posters, and quilts representing the art, culture and history of African Americans and the Anacostia community.
Contact: 202-633-4820
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
123,830 online records of wall coverings, textiles, drawings, fill papers, decorative arts, embroidery, samplers, borders, furniture and others representing art and design.
Contact: 212-849-8400
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
15,550 online records of paintings, vessels, ceramics, photographs, manuscripts, sculptures and calligraphy representing art, culture and history of Asia.
Contact: publicaffairsAsia@si.edu, 202-633-4880
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
12,040 online records of paintings, sculptures, and works on paper from the collection of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Collection.
Contact: 202.633.4674
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
19,480 online records of aircraft, spacecraft, missiles, navigational instruments, presentation models, awards, memorabilia and art works from the collection of the National Air and Space Museum Collection.
Contact: 202-633-2320
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
Online records from the NMAAHC collections that represent objects collected across the country to tell the stories that make up the African American experience.
Contact: NMAAHCinfo@si.edu
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
2,020 online records of Sculpture, Paintings, Containers, Costumes, Textiles, Tools and equipment, Masks, Furnishings, Armor and more representing the art, culture and history of Africa.
Contact: nmafaweb@si.edu, 202-633-4600
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
13,440 online records with a wide variety of museum objects from all the museum's curatorial divisions: Political History, Armed Forces History, Home & Community Life, Work & Industry, Culture & the Arts, and Medicine & Science.
Contact: 202-633-3129
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
18,510 online records of photographs, jewelry, ornaments, Sculptures, Tools and equipments, Culinary equipment, weapons representing art, culture and history of Native American Indians.
Contact: NMAIcollections@si.edu
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
Online records from the National Museum of Natural History
Contact: naturalexperience@si.edu
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
434,090 online records from the Department of Anthropology objects collection.
Contact: naturalexperience@si.edu, 202-633-1920
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Catalog Record Source
972,210 online records from the Department of Botany specimen collection.
Contact: naturalexperience@si.edu, 202-633-0920
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Catalog Record Source
224,720 online records from the Department of Entomology.
Contact: naturalexperience@si.edu
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Catalog Record Source
915,160 online records from the Department of Invertebrate Zoology.
Contact: naturalexperience@si.edu, 202-633-1740
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Catalog Record Source
389,920 online records from the Department of Mineral Sciences.
Contact: naturalexperience@si.edu, 202-633-1860
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Catalog Record Source
593,360 online records from the Department of Paleobiology.
Contact: paleodept@si.edu
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Catalog Record Source
561,170 online records from the Department of Vertebrate Zoology - Division of Amphibians and Reptiles.
Contact: naturalexperience@si.edu
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Catalog Record Source
429,290 online records from the Department of Vertebrate Zoology - Division of Birds.
Contact: ContactSmithBirds@si.edu, 202-633-0800
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Catalog Record Source
341,720 online records from the Department of Vertebrate Zoology - Division of Fishes.
Contact: naturalexperience@si.edu, 301-238-1736
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Catalog Record Source
581,180 online records from the Department of Vertebrate Zoology - Division of Mammals.
Contact: naturalexperience@si.edu
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Catalog Record Source
15,350 online records of paintings, sculpture, prints, drawings, photographs and documents from the collection of National Portrait Gallery. 85,621 records from the Catalog of American Portraits.
Contact: NPGResearch@si.edu, 202-633-8320
Browse Collection | Browse Catalog of American Portraits | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
12,490 online records of collection objects including postage stamps, letters and envelopes, postal operation equipment, military mail, postal employee gear, and archival documents.
Contact: 202-633-5555
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
Online records from the National Zoological Park.
Contact: nationalzoo.si.edu/Contact, 202-633-4888
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
41,350 online records of painting, sculpture, photographs, prints, drawings, contemporary crafts and folk art from the collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum.
Contact: AmericanArtInfo@si.edu, 202-633-7970
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
Archival collections contain more than 443,600 descriptions of personal papers, manuscripts, photographs, oral histories, films, works of art and organizational records.
Browse Collections | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
Browse Collections | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
Browse Collections | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
Browse Collections | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
Contact: naa@si.edu, 301-238-1300
Browse Collections | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
Contact: sapa@si.edu, 202-633-8390
Contact: AmericanArtInfo@si.edu, 202-633-7970
Browse Collections | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
Browse Collections | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
Smithsonian Libraries collections are particularly strong in natural history, tropical biology, and Chesapeake Bay area ecology; Anthropology; American and African American history and culture; postal, horticulture and garden history; the history of science and technology; aerospace history, astronomy, and planetary sciences; African, American Asian, contemporary, and design and decorative art; conservation science, and museum studies.
Art and Artists Files:
Over 100,000 files that contain exhibition announcements, newspaper and magazine clippings, press releases, brochures, reviews, invitations, illustrations, resumes, artists' statements, and exhibition catalogs.
Contact: askalibrarian@si.edu, 202-633-8230
Browse Collections | Catalog Record Source
Trade Literature Collections:
Over 400,000 historical trade catalogs, representing over 30,000 companies featuring predominantly American-manufactured products for industry, agriculture, business, and decorative arts. Primarily from 1880-1945, the collection includes product catalogs, technical manuals, advertising brochures, price lists, and company histories.
Contact: askalibrarian@si.edu, 202-633-3865
Browse Collections | Catalog Record Source
Smithsonian Research Online:
Over 49,630 staff publications. Smithsonian Research Online is a set of services to the research community both within and outside the Smithsonian Institution.
Contact: hutchinsona@si.edu, 202-633-1031
Browse Collections | Catalog Record Source
Browse Sculptures | Browse Paintings | Catalog Record Source
Online records from the National Science Resources Center.
Contact: 202-633-5555
Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
Online records from the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory.
Contact: 617-495-7461
Browse Collection | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
Online records from the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center.
Contact: 443-482-2200
Browse Collection | Browse Images | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
Browse Bibliography | Browse Social Media | Catalog Record Source
Browse Cephalopod Bibliography | Browse Images | Catalog Record Source
Online records from the Smithsonian Institution.
Contact: 202-633-1000
Browse resource | Home page
Online records from the Smithsonian Affiliations.
Contact: 202-633-5500
Browse resource | Home page
Online records from the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program.
Contact: 202-633-3595
Browse resouce | Home page
Online records from the Smithsonian Channel.
Contact: smithsonianchannel.com
Browse resource | Home page
Online records from the Smithsonian Center for Education and Museum Studies.
Contact: educate@si.edu, 202-633-5330
Browse resource | Home page
Online records from the Smithsonian Journeys.
Contact: 855-330-1542
Browse resource | Home page
Online records from the Smithsonian Magazine.
Contact: 202-633-1000
Browse resource | Home page
Online records from the Smithsonian Migratory Birds Center.
Contact: nationalzoo.si.edu/Contact, 202-633-4888
Browse resource | Home page
Online records from the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibitions.
Contact: 202-633-3168
Browse resource | Home page
Online records from the Smithsonian Latino Center.
Contact: 202-633-1240
Browse resource | Home page
Online records from the Smithsonian Office of the Chief Information Officer.
Browse resource
Online records from the Smithsonian Office of Public Affairs.
Contact: 202-633-2400
Browse resource | Home page
To find more information about these and other data sources try browsing the Museums pages: www.si.edu/Museums or Research Centers pages: www.si.edu/ResearchCenters
General questions: 202-633-1000, info@si.edu
This image gallery contains a sampling of visual records that are part of the Collections Search Center.
Browse Highlights
The Collections Search Center leverages a Smithsonian-developed metadata index and web services middle-layer that provides the Institution with a unified view across its multiple collection repositories. The Smithsonian name for this index and services middle-layer is EDAN - "Enterprise Digital Asset Network". In developing EDAN, the Smithsonian reviewed a number of commercial and open-source products. The functional requirements included the support of faceted metadata searching, Boolean / simple search logic, synonym/stemming matching, proximity matching, customizable relevance ranking, and highlighting display capability. It also would need to support a wide range of documents and objects from libraries, archives, and museums (LAMs) and be accessible via standard web services. In the end, the Smithsonian selected the open-source Apache Lucene/Solr indexing software for the project and built a set of complementary request and delivery services using Java. A common Index Metadata Model was developed to handle the large variety of data formats from SI's underlying collections systems. In developing the model, SI incorporated elements and best practices from established standards such as Dublin Core, MARC, and METS as well as elements reflected in the underlying COTS museum and library systems. Data mappings were performed and processes were put in place to provide regular record ingest and updates from more than 50 Institution data sources (systems and databases). This iterative process continues and the intent is for EDAN to index all major cataloged Smithsonian collections holdings. EDAN and the Collections Search Center are therefore dynamic and continually growing.
EDAN has offered the Smithsonian a flexible and scalable indexing, metadata and image delivery platform to support Smithsonian web and mobile application access to its fast growing online collections. The Collections Search Center, a web application that uses EDAN, has provided a strong, user-friendly search interface, enhanced through Java and CSS style sheets, for navigating these online collections. In doing so, it furthers the Institution's goal of making its collections available to a worldwide audience.
