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Rococo Hall, Duchess Anna Amalia Library, Weimar

Rococo Hall, Anna Amalia Library, Weimar, Germany. Photograph by NoRud, CC BY-SA 4.0

The great libraries, to walk through and to read in

52 libraries, standing and lost. 145 of their books open here, page by page.

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You are standing inRococo Hall, Anna Amalia LibraryWeimar, Germany

52 libraries across twenty-seven centuries. 10 of them are gone, and appear here only as reconstructions that say so. The rest are shown in real photographs, each with its author and licence beside it. 145 of their books lie open on the desk.

Twenty-seven centuries of reading rooms

  1. Library of Ashurbanipal gallery, British Museum, London
    Photograph by Gary Todd, CC0
    Ashurbanipal reigned from 669/668 BCELibrary of AshurbanipalNineveh, near Mosul, Iraqlost
  2. A library painted by Yahya ibn Mahmud al-Wasiti in 1237 for a copy of al-Hariri's Maqamat, showing scholars seated before shelves of books. The manuscript scene is set at Basra or Hulwan; it is not the House of Wisdom in Baghdad.
    Photograph by Yahya ibn Mahmud al-Wasiti, Public domain
    8th century to 1258House of WisdomRound city of Baghdad, Abbasid Caliphatelost
  3. Painted ceiling at the Saraswathi Mahal Library, Thanjavur
    Photograph by Wiki-uk, CC BY-SA 3.0
    Nayak royal library from 1535; Serfoji II expanded it 1798–1832; public 1918Saraswathi Mahal LibraryThanjavur, India
  4. Habsburg statue among the shelves of the Prunksaal, Vienna
    Photograph by Bahnfrend, CC BY-SA 4.0
    1723–26Prunksaal, Austrian National LibraryVienna, AustriaAlmost 80 m long, 20 m high
  5. The library of Mafra National Palace
    Photograph by xiquinhosilva from Cacau, CC BY 2.0
    Shelves 1771; books moved in 1794Mafra Palace libraryMafra, Portugal88 × 9.5 × 13 m (sources give 83–88 m)
  6. The Salle Labrouste, BnF Richelieu site
    Photograph by Peccadille, CC BY 4.0
    1861–68Labrouste Reading Room, BnFParis, FranceNine domes on 16 columns about 10 m high
  7. The Main Reading Room, Library of Congress
    Photograph by Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain
    1890–97Library of Congress Main Reading RoomWashington DC, USAOctagon 30.5 m across; dome top 38.1 m, lantern crown 48.8 m; eight alcoves (1897 Handbook)
  8. Atrium and glass wall, Tianjin Binhai Library
    Photograph by H2v5o68z, CC0
    2017Tianjin Binhai LibraryTianjin, People's Republic of China33,700 m², 5 levels

Lost, and what is left of them

All 52 libraries

Open on the desk

All 5537 books

More rooms to walk into

All 52 libraries

Not sure where to begin?

One of 52, picked for you.