The 'Ets Haim Library - Livraria Montezinos' has been part of the 'Ets Haim' seminary since 1616, and has been housed in the 'Esnoga' complex of the Portuguese-Jewish community of Amsterdam since 1675. Its 30.000 printed works and 500 manuscripts encompass all aspects of Jewish scholarship, and many aspects of literature, history and the natural sciences. The library's collections provide a detailed picture of sephardic culture as it emerged from its roots in the Iberian peninsula.

By integrating rather than assimilating into their new environment, Spanish-Portuguese Jews often played an important role in transferring scientific knowledge from the Islamic world to Christian Europe. This openness is mirrored in the Ets Haim's policy of providing a thorough grounding in Jewish scholarship combined with excellent tutoring in secular subjects like literature, philosophy and the natural sciences. This mixed curriculum contributed greatly to a society where different religions coexisted peacefully.

The dutch Department of Culture placed the library's holdings on the list of protected Dutch National Cultural Heritage in 1998. In October 2003, UNESCO, recognising the collections universal importance, inscribed them on the Memory of the World Register.