Ostraca are pottery fragments and flakes of limestone with writing in ink. "Ostraka" is the plural; "ostrakon" is a single item; the word can also be spelled with a "c" as in ostraca and ostracon. Some contain Greek, but the majority is Coptic, and they range in date from the sixth to the seventh century CE. They include about one hundred school exercises (especially abecedaries), private letters, religious texts, receipts, etc. With few exceptions, the ostraka come from monasteries in Upper Egypt around Luxor. Columbia Libraries Ostraka range in date from 150 BCE to the ninth century CE; the majority is dated 6th – 7th century CE. Some of the ostraka come from early gifts and from Egypt Exploration Society distribution of Oxyrhynchos ostraka, but most of the ostraca were acquired at the behest of Professor A. Arthur Schiller in two lots from the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1958 and 1961. They come largely from the unpublished material deriving from the Museum's excavations at Deir el Bahri and at the Monastery of Epiphanius, though some were purchases by and gifts to the MMA. Many of these Coptic ostraka are very fragmentary and little can be said about their contents. In 1991, 10 ostraca found near the ancient Mons Porphyites, in the desert between the Nile and the Red Sea, in Egypt, were donated by Roger Bagnall and added to the collection.

This is a collection of bibles, most of which are from Albany's earliest settlers.

This comprehensive communal archive of the Sephardic and Ashkenazic Jewish community provides an invaluable window into the day-to-day proceedings and official communal interactions, both within the membership of the community itself, as well as with other Jewish communities in Holland, and across the European continent. Religious functionaries, such as Rabbis and religious court judges, as well as lay leaders are represented within this archival collection.

This is a created collection incorporated by the staff of the Albany Institute of History & Art. The collection consists primarily of deeds with some additional legal documents and other materials.

The Schuyler Family was a prominent Dutch family in New York and New Jersey, with Philip Pieterse Schuyler immigrating to New Netherland and settling in Beverwyck before 1650. The family was connected by marriages to many of the other original settlers of New Netherland, and several members played important roles in the development of the new country. This collection contains correspondence, wills, estate records, and other documents.

The Hun family were descendants of 17th century Dutch settlers who became prominent and acquired property in and around the Albany area. This collection includes family papers.

This collection contains Rand’s personal papers including family correspondence, household bills and receipts, certificate of his marriage, and correspondence of Isaac McConihe.

The Pruyn Family Papers contains documents relating to three consecutive generations of the John Pruyn Family, along with genealogies and personal papers of more distant family relations. An autograph collection of presidents, statesmen, and local historic figures is included. The ownership of 43-45 North Pearl Street is documented from the first sale in 1679 to the last in 1968. The estates of Eleanor Erving, Justine Bayard Erving and Van Rensselaer Pruyn are also documented.

The Jonah Sherman Collection is a compilation of local business records, government documents, city planning materials, local histories and ephemera. Gathered by local businessman Jonah Sherman, the Collection is extremely valuable to those seeking information on the modern history of Poughkeepsie and Greater Dutchess County.

When Stephen van Rensselaer inherited the rights to the Manor of Rensselaerswyck in 1785, a survey of the holdings was made. The holdings were divided into two parts: the East Manor and the West Manor. The East Manor consisted of the areas known as Elizabethtown (Brunswick), Phillipstown (Nassau), Roxborough (Grafton), Greenbush, Schodack, Stephentown, Middletown, and Little Hoosick. This collection contains correspondence, financial records, reports, advertisements, troop rosters, property records, inventories, and other related materials.