The origins of the Central Mathematical Library operating at the Institute of Mathematics PAN date back to the mid-20th century. In 1948, the State Mathematical Institute was established (functioning under its current name since 1952), at which the library was formed. In the early days of its operation, the institution acquired the collections of the Mathematical Cabinet of the Warsaw Scientific Society, which were transported to the headquarters at 8 Śniadeckich Street in Warsaw. This collection primarily consisted of books donated in 1914 by Samuel Dickstein (1851-1939), a mathematician, educator, and historian of science, to the Warsaw Scientific Society, as well as a collection of volumes from his friend, Alexander Czajewicz (1843–1926), also a mathematician. By virtue of the Regulation of the Minister of Culture and Art of November 24, 1998, both mathematicians' collections were incorporated into the National Library Resources, which the Central Mathematical Library helped to create along with the resources of 54 other libraries in the country.
The status of a central library was granted to the institution based on the Order No. 1 of the Ministers of Culture and Art, Science, Higher Education and Technology, and the Scientific Secretary of PAN dated April 26, 1979.
In fulfilling its tasks in this area, the Central Mathematical Library collects, processes, stores, and provides access to collections in the field of mathematics and its applications. Its collection includes over 175,000 printed books and journals. In addition to the historically significant collection from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, the library continually updates and expands its resources with the latest and highly indexed mathematical publications from leading academic publishers, including Springer, Wiley, Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, SIAM, and De Gruyter.
Besides printed specialist literature, the unit provides access to extensive collections of electronic journals and books, allowing insight into the full text of thousands of archival and the most recent scientific publications. The library also provides access to renowned reference databases: SCOPUS, Web of Science, and the mathematical abstract database MathSciNet, which indexes and reviews publications from journals published by the Institute of Mathematics PAN. The Central Mathematical Library's printed and electronic collections are available not only to Polish and foreign researchers and students but also to anyone interested, regardless of their academic affiliation.
On February 14, 2024, the Central Mathematical Library, after a positive review of the library's application by the relevant department of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage and the National Library, was incorporated into thenational library network.