This research center houses an unparalleled collection of photographs documenting the art and architecture of India through its history. There are more than 150,000 photographs and 15,000 slides in the collection, meticulously documented and categorized by region. The Institute’s own professional staff has produced most of this collection. Photographs of Indian temples are accompanied by detailed architectural plans systematically produced  over the last 30 years by AIIS teams. Many of the photographs and plans in this collection from the basis of  the 14 volumes of the Institute’s highly acclaimed Encyclopedia of Indian Temple Architecture. Scholars who want the results of their work to be made available to subsequent generations have donated their photographs and negatives. The well-known scholar photographer and artist Carmel  Berkson has recently donated her renowned collection to the archives.

The Center’s open-stack library contains over 55,000 books and journals on Indian art, archaeology, history, culture, and religion, including many old and rare publications that are not available elsewhere. Subscriptions to many of the leading journals in the field from throughout the world make this library a unique resource in India, and one that is extensively used by Indians as well as foreign scholars. A generous gift from the family of the late Shyam Lal Gupta, member of the Rajya Sabha and publisher, has made the library a memorial in his name.

A current project is making the collections of the photographic archive available online for the use of teachers and scholars who cannot easily visit the center. Publication-quality prints are made available to scholars for free or at a nominal charge. The bibliographic catalog of the library is also being made available online.