10 Stunningly Beautiful Libraries Around the World

Ellyssa Kroski is the Director of Information Technology at the New York Law Institute and the blogger for OEDb’s iLibrarian, as well as a writer, educator, and international conference speaker.

Ellyssa’s blog, iLibrarian,  is awesome and here’s a guest post.

Book Mountain

The Book Mountain Library in Spijkenisse, The Netherlands looks like it was designed to be a temple dedicated to the written word.  Consisting of a four-story complex of bookshelves encased in a pyramid of glass, it also has a coffee shop and rooftop lounge.  Read more here: http://www.thecoolist.com/book-mountain-by-mvrdv/

Liyuan Library

This beautiful, naturally lit library is located in the village of Huairou, a small town outside of Beijing, China.  The Liyuan Library is lined with glass walls that are covered with sticks gathered from the local environment.  Sunlight streams in between the sticks providing a peaceful study and reading space. Read more here:  http://www.thecoolist.com/liyuan-library-by-li-xiaodong-atelier/

Yale University’s Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript

One of the world’s largest libraries devoted entirely to rare books and manuscripts, the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University is stunning to look at.  With the collection in the central core of the building as if on display, the space straddles the old and new with beautiful deftness.  Read more here:

http://beinecke.library.yale.edu/

Rijksmuseum Research Library, Amsterdam

Beautiful cast iron spiral staircases climb along the corners of the Rijksmuseum Research Library in Amsterdam.  This stunning library is housed within the Dutch national museum dedicated to arts and history in the Netherlands.  Read more here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rijksmuseum

Austrian National Library

I had the great pleasure of touring this absolutely beautiful library when I was in Vienna.  The Austrian National Library is the largest library in Austria with 7.4 million items in its various collections.  Read more here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austrian_National_Library

Royal Portuguese Reading Room

The Royal Portuguese Reading Room located in Rio de Janeiro is one of the most stunning in the world.  The Gothic library space is four-stories tall culminating in a stained glass skylight. Read more here: http://www.worldtoptop.com/real-gabinete-leitura/

National Library of France – Richelieu Site

Bibliothèque nationale de France, located in Paris is the repository of all published works in France and its collection exceeds 30 million items.  The Oval Room in the Richelieu Library was designed by architect Jean-Louis Pascal.  Read more here: http://www.bonjourparis.com/story/national-library-france-always-move/

Abbey Library St. Gallen, Switzerland

The oldest library collection in Switzerland, this beautiful monastic library holds 2,100 manuscripts dating back to the 8th through the 15th centuries as well as over 160,000 volumes.  Read more here: http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/Specials/UNESCO-World_Heritage/Sites_in_Switzerland/Opening_up_books_for_the_soul.html?cid=6070436

Trinity College Library, Dublin Ireland

The Trinity College Library Long Room is one of the most beautiful library spaces in the world.  Housed in Ireland’s oldest university, this grand Library is the largest in the country and holds the famous Book of Kells.

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   Morgan Library, New York, NY USA

Located in midtown Manhattan, the Morgan Library began as the private library of financier Pierpont Morgan (1837–1913).  I’ve been lucky enough to get a tour of this gorgeous library which is 3 stories tall and has hidden stairwells.  Read more here: http://www.morethanmidtown.com/2013/04/unseen-in-midtownthe-morgan-library-and.html

Stephen and Elyssa