Copyright - images

Creative Commons

Most images on Wellcome Collection have a Creative Commons license, or they are in the public domain (PDM) which means they are out of copyright and free to use with no restrictions. Some images are in copyright and if so this is clearly stated.

Creative Commons license restrictions:

  • CC-BY- Free to use with credit as stipulated

  • CC-BY-NC- (Non-commercial) Free to use for non-commercial purposes, with credit as stipulated

  • CC-BY-NC-ND- (Non-commercial, no derivatives) Free to use for non-commercial purposes, with credit as stipulated and without alteration to original image

The majority of the time we are not the copyright holders, but a credit as the source of the image is always appreciated. A source credit should always just be Wellcome Collection.

To publish material online as a part of Wellcome Library digitisation, we needed permission from copyright holders, but this doesn’t mean that we automatically became the copyright holder of any of the digitised material (unless it is assigned to Wellcome Trust).

Burroughs Wellcome & Co.

GSK own the copyright for material produced by Burroughs, Wellcome & Co. (which is still under copyright). Generally, GSK are not concerned about the use of historic Burroughs, Wellcome & Co. material (e.g. posters) but enquirers should be advised that they are responsible for clearing copyright or ensuring their use comes under an exception.

Further resources

Stock replies

Dear [name]

Thank you for contacting Wellcome Collection.

All the digital content including e-books and images on the Wellcome Collection site have been made available under Creative Commons Licenses. Most of the digital content is licensed as free access and the two main licences applied are:

Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) - You can use this work for any purpose, including commercial uses, without restriction under copyright law. You should also provide attribution to the original work, source and licence. Further details about this CC BY 4.0.

Creative Commons, Public Domain (CC 0) – A work has been identified as being free of known restrictions under copyright law. You can copy, modify, distribute and perform the work even for commercial purposes without asking for permission.

Some digitised works in the collections have a Creative Commons, non-commercial licence:

Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) - You can use this work for any purpose, as long as it is not primarily intended for or directed to commercial advantage or monetary compensation. You should also provide attribution to the original work, source and licence. Further details about

CC BY-NC 4.0.

Please check the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons licence applied to any of the digital images and e-books to ensure you use the content correctly. There are options to download along with the attribution to cite for an individual item except for material with a Creative Commons, Public Domain licence where attribution is not required.

Please also credit Wellcome Collection as the source of the image whatever the copyright status.

Finding digitised content

Our digital collections can be explored via the Collections pages. Most content is free to use, view and download. Type your keywords into the search box on the homepage and then refine your search results under 'location' filter button to online. Click the ‘view online’ button to access the digital content of an item within the catalogue record.

You can check the Creative Commons licence applied by clicking on the ‘more information tab’, right-hand side within the digital viewer (activated when you select the ‘view online’ button).

You can also filter images on the website by license too depending on your usage:

I hope this helps with your research,

Yours sincerely,

[Name and job title]

[Current standard Wellcome signature]

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