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What Makes the Biggest University Library in the World So Special? A Look at the History and Achieve



The Library of Congress in Washington DC is essentially both the national library of the U.S. and the country's oldest federal cultural institution. Though it consists of only three buildings, it is the largest library in the world for shelf space and number of volumes. While open to the public for on-site research and as a tourist attraction, as the research institution of Congress, only members of Congress, Supreme Court justices, and other specified government officials can check out books. The library is formally known as the "library of last resort" in the U.S., charged with making certain items available to other national libraries if all other means have been exhausted. The library's holdings are vast, including more than 32 million books, more than 61 million manuscripts, a rough draft of the Declaration of Independence, one of only four perfect vellum copies of the Gutenberg Bible in the world, over one million newspapers from the last three centuries, over five million maps, six million pieces of sheet music, and more than 14 millions photos and prints.


The Yale University Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library holds the distinction of being the largest building in the world that serves the express purpose of preserving rare books and manuscripts, which alone undoubtedly makes it one of the best libraries in the world. The library's impressive holdings celebrate significant authors like Rudyard Kipling, D.H. Lawrence, Sinclair Lewis, and Joseph Conrad through its special collections. Beinecke's central shelving area includes glass walls and soft lighting to protect the works from direct light. Accessible to the public as a tourist attraction, the library's exhibition hall displays many of the library's rare works, including one of only 48 copies in existence of a treasured Gutenberg Bible.




biggest university library in the world



The Vatican Library, under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, is one of the oldest libraries in the world. Though it was formally established in 1475, its existence in early forms dates back to the origins of the Catholic Church. For nearly 600 years, the library has added to its collection through historic acquisitions, generous bequests, and gracious gifts. The Vatican Library currently holds mor than 1.1 million books, 75,000 manuscripts, and over 8,500 incunabula. Fittingly, the library owns the oldest complete manuscript of the Bible, as well as many other significant works from medieval times.


Fittingly housed in a Renaissance building in Venice, the National Library of St. Mark's contains one of the most important collections of classical texts in the world. Though its lengthy construction period would not begin until 1537, collecting for the library began as early as 1468 with a gift from Cardinal Bessarion of 250 manuscripts and 750 codices. As of 1603, a law was enacted that required one copy of all books printed in Venice to be housed at the National Library. Today, the collection encompasses more than a million books, over 13,000 manuscripts, 2,883 incunabula, and more than 24,000 16th-century works.


Affiliated with the University of Toronto, the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library houses more rare books than any other collection in Canada. The collection includes unique artifacts like Newton's Principia (1687), Shakespeare's First Folio, the Nuremberg Chronicle (1493), and a Babylonian cuneiform tablet dating to 1789 BC. Robert S. Kenny, a Communist Party of Canada member, also donated a large part of the collection. In all, the rare book library includes more than 25,000 items with a special focus in labor movements worldwide, though with a particular emphasis on Canada and its history.


The Abbey Library of Saint Gall is the oldest library in Switzerland. The library's founder, Saint Othmar, is also credited with establishing an abbey of the same name in 719, known as one of the oldest monastery libraries in the world. Saint Gall is home to roughly 160,000 volumes, including manuscripts dating back to the 8th century. In 1983, the United Nations' Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization named the library a World Heritage site, calling it a "a perfect example of a great Carolingian monastery". The library offers online access to many of its holdings through an electronic database though, as a general rule, pre-1900 books can only be read on-site.


Much like the Library of Congress in the U.S., the Austrian National Library is responsible for managing the collection of all publications that appear in Austria. Works of special prominence include the world's foremost Globe collection, rare books dating from the 4th century, a UNESCO Memory of the World Programme item (the Vienna Dioscurides, a 6th-century illuminated manuscript exploring medicine and healing), and a map collection that dates back to the 16th century. Originally housed in the Prunksaal, the library is currently located at Hofburg Palace and the baroque Palais Mollard-Clary, housing 7.4 million items within its comprehensive collection.


The Library of the Benedictine Monastery is the largest monastery library in the world. The library holds 70,000 volumes, including 1,400 manuscripts and 900 incunables. Some items in the library's collection were gifted by Archbishop Gebhard, who founded the monastery in 1074. As part of an overall design inspired by the Enlightenment, the ceiling of the library is decorated with seven cupolas, highlighting elaborate frescoes by Bartolomeo Altomonte that display the progression of human knowledge.


While we didn't expect to find a privately owned library worthy of our list, let's just say it was a pleasant surprise to learn that American inventor and entrepreneur Jay Walker used his wealth to develop a comprehensive private library. Christened "The Walker Library of the History of Human Imagination," the library located in Walker's Connecticut home has been called "the most amazing library in the world" by WIRED magazine as well as the subject of a TED Talk. The architecture incorporates a multi-level design inspired by the surreal works of M.C. Escher. It houses more than 50,000 books, including historic and museum-worthy manuscripts and publications. While the library is not open to the public, Walker has been known to host notable public figures at his home.


The Trinity College Library, fondly called the Long Room, is the largest library in Dublin, and responsible for many of the same functions for Ireland that the Library of Congress fulfills for the United States. Though the library actually consists of four separate buildings, the Old Library, built in 1592, is among Ireland's biggest tourist attractions, home to the historic Book of Kells, a Gospel book created by Celtic monks roughly around 800 AD. It is also home to six million other printed works, including manuscripts, music, journals, maps, and special collections.


The formation in the 12th century of the Melk Monastery Library followed the founding of Melk Abbey and school of the same name around 1089. Word spread quickly, and the Melk Library became known as one of the largest manuscript holders in the world, also emerging as an authority in manuscript production. Today, the library's high ceilings, adorned with beautiful frescos painted by Paul Troger, guard what is still one of the world's biggest library when it comes to collections of medieval manuscripts, as well as a prominent collection of musical manuscripts.


Founded in 1854, the State Library of Victoria now holds more than 1.5 million books, including special collections highlighting chess, the arts, the diaries of Melbourne's founders, and the folios of Captain James Cook. The centerpiece of the library is the LaTrobe Reading Room, a soaring octagonal space with the capacity to accommodate more than one million books and 500 researchers or readers in one sitting. At the time of its completion in 1913, the LaTrobe Reading Room was the largest dome in the world; today, it houses the library's extensive Australiana collection.


Originally intended to be a cultural center of Baltimore called the Peabody Institute Library, the George Peabody Library as it stands now is the research library of Johns Hopkins University. The library was a part of the Institute from 1878 until 1967, when it became owned by the city of Baltimore. It was eventually passed to Johns Hopkins in 1982, and is now where the university's special collections reside. Many of the collection's titles date back to the 19th century, and includes one of the world's foremost collections of Don Quixote editions. The building was described by the first Peabody provost as a "cathedral of books," featuring a 61-foot-high atrium, beautiful black and white marble flooring, numerous balconies, and golden columns.


The Phillips Exeter Academy Library is the biggest library in the world when it comes to secondary school libraries. In a way, this is one of the most impressive libraries on our list for being merely a part of a prep school, albeit one of the wealthiest prep schools in the world. Designed by architect Louis Kahn, the the structure has won numerous architectural awards, including a Twenty-five Year Award by the American Institute of Architects, which is given to only one prestigious building each year. The library was even commemorated on a U.S. Postal Service stamp in 2005 as one of 12 stamp-worthy Masterworks of Modern American Architecture.


The Library of Alexandria was the ancient world's largest and most comprehensive library, housing books and manuscripts (on papyrus scrolls) as well as meeting rooms, gardens, and lecture halls on its grounds. Considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the original Library of Alexandria was tragically destroyed in a fire nearly 2,000 years ago. The new Library of Alexandria is a memorial to its predecessor. The Library cost $220 million to rebuild in 2002, and is now operating as not only a library, but also as a cultural center, planetarium, manuscript restoration lab, art gallery and exhibition space, museum, and conference center. Currently, the library contains more than 500,000 books, though it has space for over eight million. 2ff7e9595c


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