National Library of Medicine Joins The Commons on Flickr

The National Library of Medicine is pleased to announce that it is now a participating institution of the Commons on Flickr. The Commons on Flickr was launched in 2008 as a pilot project in partnership with the Library of Congress in order to increase access to publicly-held photography collections and to invite the general public to provide information about the collections. The National Library of Medicine now joins a distinguished, international group of nearly one hundred cultural institutions in providing greater access to its collection and inviting public use of and engagement with these images held in the public trust through The Commons on Flickr. Images from the historical collections of the History of Medicine Division, including public health posters, book illustrations, photographs, fine art work, and ephemera, have always been available through the Images from the History of Medicine database, which includes over 70,000 images illustrating the social and historical aspects of medicine dated from the 15th to the 21st century. Now, people can also access them through the Commons on Flickr via a photostream where visitors can contribute information about the images by adding comments and tags. By adding a new way to see our collections through Flickr we hope to learn more details about our collections, create dialog about our holdings, and share knowledge with the public. Our collection of images on Flickr will continue to grow so we hope visitors will check back frequently for new content.