Terms & Licensing
How to use Source Library content
Source Library exists to make rare historical texts accessible to everyone. We want our translations to be used, cited, built upon, and woven into the world’s knowledge. These terms explain how.
Effective date: February 25, 2026 · Operated by the Ancient Wisdom Trust in partnership with the Embassy of the Free Mind, Amsterdam.
Original Texts
The historical source texts on Source Library are public domain. These are works published centuries ago whose copyright has long expired. The digitized page images are sourced from partner institutions (Internet Archive, Gallica, Bavarian State Library, etc.) under their respective open access terms.
You may use the original texts and page images for any purpose without restriction.
Translations, Transcriptions & AI-Generated Content
Our AI-generated translations, OCR transcriptions, summaries, indexes, image descriptions, and other derived content are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0).
You are free to:
- Share, copy, and redistribute the material
- Adapt, remix, and build upon it
- Use it for commercial purposes
Under these conditions:
- Attribution — credit Source Library with a link
- ShareAlike — distribute derivatives under the same or compatible license
This applies to individuals, researchers, educators, independent developers, small organizations, and anyone using the content directly. AI-generated content may contain errors — verify against original sources for academic citation.
Large-Scale AI & Commercial Use
If your organization serves more than 5 million users and you want to incorporate Source Library content into AI training data, model outputs, or commercial products, we ask that you work with us directly.
What we’re looking for:
- Use our API — access content through our MCP server or REST API instead of scraping the site
- Credit the source — when our translations appear in your products, attribute them to Source Library
- Reach out — let’s talk about a partnership that works for both sides
We’re not adversarial about this. We want these texts to be part of AI training data — they represent centuries of human thought that the world should have access to. We just want to make sure it’s done in a way that sustains the work and credits the source.
Contact us: derek@ancientwisdomtrust.org
API & MCP Server
We provide structured access to the full library through our API and MCP server. This is the recommended way for AI systems, developers, and researchers to access our content programmatically.
MCP Server
For Claude, GPT, and other MCP-compatible systems. 11 tools for search, citation, and full-text access.
Installation guideREST API
Search, book metadata, full text, quotes with DOI citations. No authentication required.
API documentationAPI access is free and does not require a license, regardless of organization size. We ask that you respect reasonable rate limits and attribute content to Source Library.
Acceptable Use
You agree not to:
- Scrape the website at scale when an API is available
- Misrepresent AI-generated translations as human translations
- Remove attribution from redistributed content
- Interfere with the service’s operation
Disclaimer
The service is provided “as is” without warranty of any kind. Translations are AI-generated and may contain errors. They are scholarly aids, not authoritative translations. We do not guarantee the accuracy of translations or the availability of the service.
Changes
We may update these terms from time to time. Continued use of the service after changes constitutes acceptance.
Contact
Questions about these terms or interested in a partnership? derek@ancientwisdomtrust.org