IWM Library
From just a single bookshelf, the IWM Library has grown over the years into a collection of 40,000 volumes of books and periodicals in over 20 languages—predominately German, English, French, Czech, and Polish. The composition of the library’s collection reflects the broad fields of research at the Institute, past and present. Topics include philosophy, history, political science, anthropology, gender studies, and many more.
The collection guidelines are flexible, adapting and changing in response to research projects and their needs. Alongside key texts, collected works, and critical editions, the library also collects the publications of the Institute’s permanent fellows and former visiting fellows, with a particular focus on new translations published through our Paul Celan Fellowship.
The library’s holdings can be found in WorldCat or at the Institute via our local online catalogue. The IWM library is a public, non-lending, open-stack facility distributed throughout the Institute.
Library Contact and User Guidelines
Please consult the user guidelines below and contact the head of the library prior to your visit to arrange a time and date.
Please note: the IWM Library will be closed from 1 July–30 August 2025.
Opening hours (from September 2025):
Tuesday–Thursday 9:00–14:00
Mag. Katharina Gratz M.A.(LIS), Head of Library and IWM Archive
library@iwm.at
IWM Archive
The IWM Archive collects all physical and digital materials related to the Institute’s activities and thus forms its institutional memory. The inventory follows the structure and chronology of the IWM during the stewardship of its founding rector (1982–2013) as closely as possible:
A. Administration, B. Fellowship Programs, C. Research, D. Events, E. Publications, F. Public Relations, G. Library, H. Image and Sound Archives, I. IT.
In its current form, the IWM Archive consists for the most part of paper documents which were generally filed and stored in folders at the time of their creation. The archive also contains catalogues of digitized photographs and audio recordings related to events held by the Institute, as well as digital collections of the Institute’s chronicles and its journal Transit.
Terms of Use
The IWM Archive is open to use for non-commercial research purposes upon request.
Please note that for reasons of copyright and personal rights, archive materials cannot be consulted within a general protection period of 30 years of the date of their creation. Protection periods may be shortened/canceled for the purpose of scientific research.
To request materials and make an appointment, please contact Katharina Gratz at library@iwm.at after consulting the user guidelines and the finding aid below. Anybody wishing to use the collection must sign the archive’s user guidelines on their first visit.
Finding Aid (English) / Findbuch (Deutsch)
User Guidelines (English) / Benutzungsordnung (Deutsch)
Jan Patočka Archive
The archive of the works of Czech philosopher Jan Patočka (1907-1977) was established in 1984 with the purpose of collecting, exploring, and disseminating his oeuvre. It was the first archival collection of his works to be created before the Velvet Revolution of 1989. The authoritative Patočka archival collection at the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague was not established until 1990. The Vienna archive has provided the basis for numerous editions of Patočka’s writings in various languages and served as the flywheel for several long-standing research programs.
The archive brings together all published and unpublished primary works by the philosopher, consisting of manuscripts, typescripts, and pieces of correspondence, some of which are copies of the original documents in the Prague archive. It also aims to collect a wide range of the extensive secondary literature on Patočka in all languages.
Krzysztof Michalski Archive
The Krzysztof Michalski Archive was established in 2019 in order to make the work of IWM’s founding rector available for research and publication. It consists of Michalski’s literary estate, which was donated to the IWM by his heirs with the intention of preserving his writings and making them available for research.
The archive provides an extensive bibliography of all published writings by Michalski and a corresponding collection of originals and/or copies of all pieces listed. It also collects all unpublished manuscripts by the IWM’s founding rector. Additional archival material includes Michalski’s personal documents, books, and various pieces linked to his work and life. A full list of his working library, which was donated to the Polish National Library, can be found in their catalogue.
Michalski’s personal correspondence and documents are currently not accessible to the public.
Terms of Use
Both archival collections can be consulted by contacting Permanent Fellow Ludger Hagedorn, head of the Patočka and Michalski Archives at library@iwm.at. Anybody wishing to use a collection must sign the archive’s user guidelines on their first visit.
Please find below our user documents:
Jan Patočka Archive: User Guidelines (English) / Benutzungsordnung (Deutsch)
Krzysztof Michalski Archive: User Guidelines (English) / Benutzungsordnung (Deutsch)
