SourceLibrary
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Most books written before 1800 have never been translated
into any modern language.
We're bringing them
back to life.
Source Library uses AI to translate thousands of rare historical texts — early science, philosophy, medicine, alchemy, theology — into modern English. 5,000+ books. 1.6 million pages. 120 books free and open. Register for free to access the full collection.
An initiative of the Embassy of the Free Mind, Amsterdam
See it in action
A 1,000-page cosmology, translated for the first time
Robert Fludd's Utriusque Cosmi Historia (1617) — a lavishly illustrated theory of the universe as a musical instrument. No complete English translation has ever been published.
Original manuscript and AI translation, side by side. Try the reader →
29,000+ illustrations extracted
Emblems, engravings, diagrams, and woodcuts — identified by AI, described with museum-quality metadata, and searchable.
The Wind Carried Him in Its Belly
Atalanta Fugiens, 1617
The First Key of Basil Valentine
Musaeum Hermeticum, 1678
Perspective Drawing Machine
Unterweysung der Messung, 1525
Fortuna Overcoming Virtue
Emblemata, 1621
The Ouroboros
Atalanta Fugiens, 1617
Alchemical Distillation
Musaeum Hermeticum, 1678
5,000+
Rare books
1.6M
Pages scanned
81K+
Pages translated
71
Languages
29K+
Illustrations
Free to read and cite.
Source Library opens February 22, 2026. 120 books are completely open — no account needed. Register for free to unlock the full collection of 5,000+ texts. No payment required, ever.
Free access with registration. No paywall.