Sylvia Beach's Circle and Collections consists of items collected by Sylvia Beach, documenting two overlapping collecting activities: Sylvia Beach's incidental files on artists in her circle (not directly relating to her publication activities, which are documented in the Shakespeare Company series), and her more formal literary and art collections. The boundary between the two collection activities is fluid, and there are several documented cases in which Beach later formalized collections that were originally created out of personal interest or for reference or business purposes (most notably, her collection of Joyce material, which she largely sold to the University of Buffalo, and her collection of Whitman manuscripts, originally keepsakes she inherited from her aunt and which she later exhibited and offered for sale). The series further contains information on exhibitions of Beach's collections and on the sale of collection items to various cultural institutions.

This series consists of assorted photographs documenting the different facets and relationships central to Beach's life: her family; her friends, particularly Adrienne Monnier, but also including writers and artists; and her life in Paris as proprietress of Shakespeare and Company.