Exploring the East Asian Collection at the Wangensteen Historical Library of Medicine and Biology at the University of Minnesota

Abstract The Wangensteen Historical Library of Medicine and Biology ( WHL ) at the University of Minnesota ( UMN ) is a special collections library founded in the mid-1960s. It has been continuously collecting rare East Asian items over the last fifteen years, and now constitutes more than half of the UMN rare East Asian collection. The materials in WHL were primarily acquired for their relevance to medicine and biology but may also be beneficial to other disciplines. Most of the WHL items are understudied and less well known to the public. This article will feature four items to showcase the collection’s strength and diversity.