The papers of Edward F. Edinger (1922-1998) span the years 1550-2016, with the bulk of the material dating from 1951 to 1998. The collection relates primarily to Edinger's career as a leading Jungian analyst. He was known for his ability to elucidate C. G. Jung's ideas and concepts in a simple and precise manner, making Jung's work more accessible. The papers also provide insight into Edinger's own theoretical work, including his belief that modern man's psychological disorientation was a result of the loss of a core religious mythology, and his interest in the therapeutic role of alchemy, literature, philosophy, and religion. The collection consists of writings, lectures, correspondence, notes, photographs, military records, slides, digital files, printed matter, and other material. The papers are in English and arranged alphabetically by topic or type of material.

The majority of the papers comprise Edinger's lectures and writings. Most of his books are based on edited transcripts of lectures. Topics include alchemy, archetypes, C. G. Jung's work, collective unconscious, Greek mythology and philosophy, individuation, the psyche, psychotherapy, symbols, and the transformation of the God-image. The collection does not include Edinger's entire body of work. Files pertaining to lectures and seminars contain correspondence, handwritten and typed lectures, research material, and transcriptions. Writings include handwritten and typed drafts along with supporting material. Edinger's handwritten edits are found throughout the writings. Additionally, the papers document Edinger's efforts, as president of the New York Association for Analytical Psychology, to plan a memorial meeting to honor C. G. Jung in 1961. Also included are occasional journal entries. Digital files consist of audio recordings of Edinger's funeral service. The two files were originally received on two CDs and complement the funeral service paper file.

The 2020 Addition further documents Edinger’s career as a Jungian analyst. Edinger's writings in the 2020 Addition relate to Gnosticism, the psyche, and Ralph Waldo Emerson. Edinger saw parallels between Emerson and Jung and credits Emerson with the development of the introverted intuition. Also included in the addition are notes pertaining to three reading courses taught by Edinger to deepen the understandings of Jung's work. Edinger's reflections on the courses and Jung are reflected in the notes, and the notes also include supporting material. Copies and reprints of lectures and writings about and by M. Esther Harding and C. G. Jung along with writings by others feature topics such as alchemy, C. G. Jung, collective unconscious, dreams, Gnosticism, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and schizophrenia. Prominently featured in the addition is Jung's emphasis on alchemy as not just mystical philosophy or chemistry, but as the symbolic representation of the process of individuation, the path towards psychological wholeness. The 2021 Addition contains two letters between Edinger and Russel B. Huff and Clifford Rollins relating to the collective unconscious. Attached to the letters are images of Rollin's paintings with descriptions.