diff --git a/buildingmotif/database/errors.py b/buildingmotif/database/errors.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..f928c542
--- /dev/null
+++ b/buildingmotif/database/errors.py
@@ -0,0 +1,51 @@
+from typing import Optional
+
+# The point of these exceptions is to provide more specific error messages which
+# also embed the ID or name of the object that was not found. This is useful for
+# debugging and logging purposes.
+
+
+class LibraryNotFound(Exception):
+    def __init__(self, name: Optional[str] = None, idnum: Optional[int] = None):
+        self.lib_name = name
+        self.lib_id = idnum
+
+    def __str__(self):
+        if self.lib_name:
+            return f"Library with name '{self.lib_name}' not found"
+        return f"Library with id '{self.lib_id}' not found"
+
+
+class TemplateNotFound(Exception):
+    def __init__(self, name: Optional[str] = None, idnum: Optional[int] = None):
+        self.template_name = name
+        self.template_id = idnum
+
+    def __str__(self):
+        if self.template_name:
+            return f"Template with name '{self.template_name}' not found"
+        return f"Template with id '{self.template_id}' not found"
+
+
+class ShapeCollectionNotFound(Exception):
+    def __init__(self, name: Optional[str] = None, idnum: Optional[int] = None):
+        self.shape_collection_name = name
+        self.shape_collection_id = idnum
+
+    def __str__(self):
+        if self.shape_collection_name:
+            return (
+                f"Shape Collection with name '{self.shape_collection_name}' not found"
+            )
+        return f"Shape Collection with id '{self.shape_collection_id}' not found"
+
+
+class ModelNotFound(Exception):
+    def __init__(self, name: Optional[str] = None, idnum: Optional[int] = None):
+        self.model_name = name
+        self.model_id = idnum
+
+    def __str__(self):
+        if self.model_name:
+            return f"Model with name '{self.model_name}' not found"
+        return f"Model with id '{self.model_id}' not found"