eth-library-mcp 0.2.0

MCP Server für die ETH-Bibliothek Zürich – Zugriff auf 30+ Millionen Ressourcen via Discovery, Persons und Research Collection API

🇨🇭 Part of the Swiss Public Data MCP Portfolio

🏛️ eth-library-mcp

MCP server giving AI models direct access to 30M+ resources at ETH Library Zurich – books, maps, images, archival material, and linked-data person records.

🇩🇪 Deutsche Version

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Overview

eth-library-mcp connects AI assistants like Claude to the largest natural-science library in Switzerland. It exposes full-text search, archive-level queries, resource-type filtering, and person lookups via the ETH Library's Discovery and Persons APIs – all through a single, standardised MCP interface.

7 Tools · 3 APIs · 2 Resources · 2 Prompts

⚠️ Known issue (BUG-02): The tool eth_search_persons is currently non-functional because the Persons API endpoint returns HTTP 404. The correct URL needs to be verified at developer.library.ethz.ch. All other 6 tools work correctly.

Anchor demo query: "Find historical documents about Zurich school history in the ETH Library archives."

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Features

• 🔍 Full-text search over 30M+ resources with fields, operators, and facets
• 📖 Resource details – full metadata via MMS-ID
• 🗂️ Archive search – ETH University Archives, Max Frisch, Thomas Mann, Graphische Sammlung, Bildarchiv
• 🏷️ Resource type filter – books, maps, images, archival material and more
• 🎓 Education search – curated workflow optimised for pedagogy and school history
• 👤 Person search with linked-data enrichment (Wikidata, GND, Metagrid) (BUG-02: currently unavailable)
• 📋 Server overview – all resource types and archives at a glance
• 🗣️ Built-in prompts – structured research and education-research workflows
• ☁️ Dual transport – stdio for Claude Desktop, Streamable HTTP/SSE for cloud deployment

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Prerequisites

• Python 3.11+
• A free API key from developer.library.ethz.ch

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Installation

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/malkreide/eth-library-mcp.git
cd eth-library-mcp

# Install
pip install -e .

# Or with uv (recommended)
uv pip install -e .

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Quickstart

# Set the API key
export ETH_LIBRARY_API_KEY=your_key_here   # macOS / Linux
# $env:ETH_LIBRARY_API_KEY = "your_key_here"  # Windows (PowerShell)

# Start the server (stdio mode for Claude Desktop)
python -m eth_library_mcp.server

Without an API key the server returns a helpful error message with the registration link – no crashes.

Try it immediately in Claude Desktop:

"Find books about Swiss education history in the ETH Library." "Search the Max Frisch archive for manuscripts about Zurich."

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Configuration

Environment Variables

Variable	Description	Required
ETH_LIBRARY_API_KEY	API key for Discovery & Persons API	✅

Claude Desktop Configuration

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "eth-library": {
      "command": "python",
      "args": ["-m", "eth_library_mcp.server"],
      "env": {
        "ETH_LIBRARY_API_KEY": "your_key_here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Config file locations:

• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
• Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

Cloud Deployment (SSE for browser access)

For use via claude.ai in the browser (e.g. on managed workstations without local software):

MCP_TRANSPORT=sse PORT=8000 python -m eth_library_mcp.server

💡 "stdio for the developer laptop, SSE for the browser."

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Available Tools

Discovery API (api.library.ethz.ch)

Tool	Description
eth_search_resources	Full-text search over 30M+ resources with fields, operators, facets
eth_get_resource	Full metadata for a specific resource via MMS-ID
eth_search_archive	Search within a specific archive (University Archives, Max Frisch, Thomas Mann, etc.)
eth_search_by_type	Filter by resource type (books, maps, images, archival material, etc.)
eth_search_education	Curated search for education topics (pedagogy, school history, etc.)

Persons API

Tool	Description
eth_search_persons	Person search with linked-data enrichment (Wikidata, GND, Metagrid) — ⚠️ BUG-02

Utilities

Tool	Description
eth_library_info	Server overview: all types and archives at a glance

Resources & Prompts

Item	Type	Description
eth://resource-types	Resource	All available resource types
eth://archives	Resource	All available archives and collections
research-workflow	Prompt	Structured research workflow
education-research	Prompt	Education topics workflow (Schulamt-optimised)

Query Syntax

The Discovery API uses structured queries:

field,operator,value

Field	Meaning
any	All fields (recommended for starters)
title	Title only
creator	Author / creator
sub	Subject headings / topics

Operator	Meaning
contains	Term is present
exact	Exact match
begins_with	Starts with

Examples:

any,contains,Volksschule Zürich
title,contains,Pädagogik
creator,exact,Einstein Albert
sub,contains,Bildungsforschung
title,contains,Schule;sub,contains,Geschichte

Available Archives

Identifier	Description
ETH_Hochschularchiv	Institutional memory of ETH Zurich
ETH_MaxFrischArchiv	Estate of Swiss author Max Frisch
ETH_ThomasMannArchiv	Letters and documents of Thomas Mann
ETH_GraphischeSammlung	Prints, drawings, graphic works
ETH_Bildarchiv	Science/technology history, Swissair (E-Pics)

Example Use Cases

Query	Tool
"Find books about Zurich school history"	eth_search_education
"What's in the Max Frisch archive?"	eth_search_archive
"Find historical maps of Switzerland"	eth_search_by_type
"Get full metadata for resource ID 991170525863705501"	eth_get_resource
"Which archives does the ETH Library hold?"	eth_library_info

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Project Structure

eth-library-mcp/
├── eth_library_mcp/           # Main package
│   └── server.py              # FastMCP server, tool definitions
├── CHANGELOG.md
├── CONTRIBUTING.md
├── LICENSE
├── README.md                  # This file (English)
├── README.de.md               # German version
├── TEST_PLAN.md
├── claude_desktop_config.json # Example Claude Desktop configuration
└── pyproject.toml             # Build configuration

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Known Limitations

• BUG-02 (Persons API): eth_search_persons returns HTTP 404 – correct endpoint URL to be verified at developer.library.ethz.ch
• Bibliographic metadata: Licensed as Public Domain – free for all uses, no restrictions
• Rate limits: Governed by the ETH Library API terms; no built-in throttling in this server version

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Testing

# Unit tests (no API key required)
PYTHONPATH=. pytest tests/ -m "not live"

# Integration tests (API key required)
ETH_LIBRARY_API_KEY=xxx pytest tests/ -m "live"

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Contributing

Contributions are welcome! See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.

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Changelog

See CHANGELOG.md

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License

• Server code: MIT License — see LICENSE
• Bibliographic metadata: Public Domain (no restrictions)
• API documentation: developer.library.ethz.ch

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Author

Hayal Oezkan · github.com/malkreide

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Credits & Related Projects

• Data: ETH Library Zurich – Discovery & Persons APIs
• Protocol: Model Context Protocol – Anthropic / Linux Foundation
• Related: swiss-transport-mcp – MCP server for Swiss public transport
• Related: zurich-opendata-mcp – MCP server for Zurich city open data
• Portfolio: Swiss Public Data MCP Portfolio