Hunt Institute: FAQ

General

What is the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation?

Specializing in the history of botany and all aspects of plant science, Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation is a research division of Carnegie Mellon University. We maintain collections of books, plant images, manuscripts, portraits and data files for scientific study.

What can I see by visiting the Hunt Institute?

It is best to schedule your visit during an art exhibition. Arrangements can be made in advance for brief tours of the Reading Room. You also can make appointments for scholarly research in our Library or Archives.

What are your hours? Where are you located?

Please see the Contact Us and Directions pages.

Does Hunt Institute have a gift shop?

Although we do not have a formal gift shop, we do sell our publications and posters along with cards, journals and guest books containing beautiful images from our collections. For the most part, the cards, journals and guest books are sold only on site, but our publications and posters can be ordered on our Web site and through the mail.

Will you add my name to the Hunt Institute mailing list?

The best way to be informed about Institute news and exhibitions is by joining the Institute as an Associate. Hunt Institute Associates receive a number of benefits like our Bulletin and our journal Huntia as well as discounts on other publications. We do have an exhibition-only mailing list that is used to send information about our forthcoming exhibitions. Please email Editor Scarlett Townsend at st19@andrew.cmu.edu to be added to the list.

How do I become an Associate Member?

Please see the Associate page. If you have further questions, please contact the Institute .

Botany

Does the Institute identify plants?

Unfortunately, we do not have the staff or resources, as an herbarium does, to handle identifications. Staff botanists do provide emergency identifications for the Pittsburgh Poison Center.

Does the Institute collect plant specimens?

Unlike botanical gardens and arboreta (which have living plant collections) or museums and herbaria (which have dried plant specimens), Hunt Institute collects books, artworks, portraits, archival materials, and information that documents the past and ongoing history of botany.

Was Rachel Hunt a botanist?

Although not a botanist, Rachel Hunt had a lifelong passion for plants and gardens, for history and for books, and she combined these interests to develop a well-known collection of rare books, artworks, manuscripts and portraits focusing on the history of botany and plants. Her collections form the nucleus of the Institute's current holdings.

Collections

How do I get permission to publish or use an image from an artwork, book or portrait in your collection, and what are the fees?

Please contact the Art, Library or Archives department (respectively) to discuss availability, fees, etc. There is an outline of our services and charges on our Web site. However, we cannot authorize reproduction of contemporary artworks, but we may be able to put you in contact with the artist.

Does Hunt Institute allow use of images from its collections for non-scientific or non-scholarly purposes?

While we primarily serve the scientific community, we also offer assistance to the public. Please contact the department responsible for the item of which you would like the image or send an email to the Institute if you are uncertain of the specific department.

Can I see other artwork in your collections besides what is on display in the gallery?

To request specific items, contact the Art Department in advance of your visit. Our 30,000 artworks are filed alphabetically by artist. Consult the Catalogue of the Botanical Art Collection at the Hunt Institute, Parts 1–9, for information about the artworks in our collection. Please note that the collection is not for browsing.

Does Hunt Institute have a slide library?

Although there has been no systematic initiative to develop a slide library, each collection department holds some slides that have accumulated over time, mostly reproducing images from our collections. We also have some slides of local gardens from the first half of the 20th century, and some slides are included in various botanists' papers deposited here. Typically when someone calls to request an image for publication or other use, we arrange with our graphics manager to produce a print, slide, transparency, negative or digital image as needed.

Can the artworks be borrowed?

The Hunt Institute has about five travel exhibitions available for a modest fee to institutions meeting our requirements for environment and security. We will consider requests by institutions to borrow individual artworks for major exhibitions. Photographs of artworks usually can be supplied.

Are the collections of the Library, the Art Department and Archives listed on the Web?

Most books in the Library collection are listed in the Carnegie Mellon University Libraries' online catalogue. The Catalogue of the Botanical Art Collection at the Hunt Institute is available as a database. Printed guides are available to the department collections. See also our Guide to the Archives, Catalogue of Portraits of Naturalists..., and Catalogue of the Botanical Art Collection at the Hunt Institute.

Departments

Does the Institute's Archives focus on other subjects besides the history of Hunt Institute?

Yes, the Archives also keeps files on historical and contemporary botanists, botanical events and botanical artists (to a lesser extent). Our files are catalogued primarily by biographical subjects' names instead of by broad topics.

I am a botanist and would like advice on where to deposit my papers and books.

The archives and library at your home institution is the best place for your materials. If that is impossible, please contact our Archivist at at3i@andrew.cmu.edu for further advice.

I have heard that you keep a biographical record of botanists. As a botanist, what do I need to do to become a part of this?

While we may already have information on file culled from contemporary journals, we particularly value information and signatures in the botanist's hand. Please download and complete a biographical record form from the Archives' page and send along your curriculum vita to the Archivist.

How do I book a travel exhibition?

Please download and complete the online application, and then mail it to the Assistant Curator of Art at lbruno@andrew.cmu.edu.

Can you tell me if my old botanical prints have any value?

With a slide or photocopy we may be able to tell you the publication source, but it is not always possible to determine the technique. Please contact us before sending images as email attachments. We are not prepared to make authentications. We do not provide appraisals and recommend your consulting an art appraiser or art gallery. Please see the appraisals section in your local yellow pages for the appraiser nearest you.

Will you evaluate my artwork for possible inclusion in a Hunt Institute exhibition from an email attachment or the images on my Web site?

We prefer 35-mm slides or transparencies.

How do I submit artworks for consideration for inclusion in an International Exhibition?

First send a resume and some slides to Curator of Art James J. White or email him at jw3u@andrew.cmu.edu.

What is the current exhibition on display in the gallery?

Please see the News and Events page for the most current information.

Does Hunt Botanical Library lend its books on interlibrary loan?

We make lending decisions on a case-by-case basis, and generally speaking we lend only selected post-1900 publications. More frequently we provide interlibrary loan service by providing photocopies.

Is the Hunt Catalogue a complete catalogue of the Library collection?

Nearly 800 books from Mrs. Hunt's botanical book collection that were published before 1801 are documented in the two-volume Catalogue of Botanical Books in the Collection of Rachel McMasters Miller Hunt, compiled by Jane Quinby (Pittsburgh, 1958–1961). Most books in the Library collection are listed in the Carnegie Mellon University Libraries' online catalogue.

Are Hunt Botanical Library and Hunt Library the same library?

Oddly enough, these are two different libraries. Hunt Botanical Library is the library of the Hunt Institute. Hunt Library is one of the three libraries in the Carnegie Mellon University Libraries' system and is the humanities and social sciences library for the CMU campus. People get these two libraries confused frequently, and the fact that they are in the same building can add to the confusion. The building is called the Hunt Library building, and it was donated by Roy and Rachel Hunt to house the Hunt Botanical Library and to provide space for a campus library.

Publications

How do I order your publications?

Complete the order form on the Web site and mail or fax it to the Institute.

What topics are covered in your journal Huntia?

We publish on all aspects of botanical history and documentation, including exploration, art, literature, biography, iconography and bibliography. For examples, please see the contents of previous issues on the Huntia page.

Do you accept external submissions to Huntia?

We welcome external submissions, and we have eliminated page charges.

How do I submit an article to Huntia?

Please review the "Guidelines for Contributors" before submitting your article to the Editor.

Can I submit books to be reviewed in Huntia?

You may contact the review editor at ct0u@andrew.cmu.edu to suggest books for review. We are selective about what we review in Huntia, but we do welcome recommendations.

Can I submit an article to the Bulletin?

The Bulletin is a staff-written publication covering the Institute and its activities. However, if you would like to comment on an article published in the Bulletin, please send a letter to the Editor.

Web site

I have a botanical site and would like to link it to the Institute's site. Is that possible?

Please send your request to the Site Editor at st19@andrew.cmu.edu.

I see that the Institute hosts another site. Are you interested in housing, developing or maintaining my site?

At this time, we do not have the resources, facilities or staff necessary to host other sites.

Can I use your images or text on my Web site?

You may use unaltered images or text on your Web site as long as your site is not commercial. This means that your site has no advertisements or sponsors, does not charge fees, and does not offer any product or service for sale. You must include any accompanying caption, which must remain unaltered. Finally, you must cite the Institute and include our URL, huntbot.andrew.cmu.edu. You are not permitted to use any 20th-century images, which are under the copyright of the artist. For commercial use of information from our site, you must request and receive written approval from the Institute. Please review our Terms and Conditions statement for additional information.

May I put unaltered images or text from your site on a file server at my school or museum?

This is permitted under the following conditions. There must be no charge for the user. The electronic distribution is limited only to your school or museum. The images and text remain unaltered. You must include any accompanying caption, which must remain unaltered. Finally, you must cite the Institute and include our URL, huntbot.andrew.cmu.edu. Please review our Terms and Conditions. statement for additional information.

May I print images or text excerpts from your site for an elementary school, high school or college report?

As long as it is a personal or academic work not meant for publication in any medium, you can use unaltered text or images. We encourage this type of use. For images, the accompanying caption must remain unaltered. Finally, you must cite the Institute and include our URL, huntbot.andrew.cmu.edu. Please review our Terms and Conditions. statement for additional information.

May I put images or text from your site on a CD-ROM?

If the CD-ROM is for commercial use, you must request and receive written approval from the Institute. Please review our Terms and Conditions. statement for additional information.

May I download images from your Web site and use them in printed publications?

For all print usage (both commercial and non-commercial), you must contact the Institute for permission. Images downloaded from our Web site will have a resolution of 72 dpi. These images would be adequate for use on a Web site, in a PowerPoint presentation, and in a laser-printed document. However, professionally printed journals, magazines, and newsletters, etc., generally require 300 dpi tiff or jpeg images. See the Service Charges page for a list of the fees for reproduction and publication.

May I mirror any materials or your entire site on my Internet site?

You may mirror unaltered images or text on your Web site as long as your site is not commercial. This means that your site has no advertisements or sponsors, does not charge fees, and does not offer any product or service for sale. You must include any accompanying caption, which must remain unaltered. Finally, you must cite the Institute and include our URL, huntbot.andrew.cmu.edu. Please review our Terms and Conditions. statement for additional information.