The Most Visually Stunning Libraries of the World

With the introduction of the iPad and the Kindle we have witnessed another revolution in the evolution of the printed word.  We should remember that books, as we know them today, only came about in the late Renaissance in the mid 16th century.  Johannes Gutenburg and his Gutenburg Bible made astounding advances for the printed word and its dissemination throughout Europe.  Prior to the introduction of the printing press books had been hand written for centuries on anything from papyrus to linen, which makes such artifacts called incunables (books published before 1501 A.C.E.), priceless and their knowledge the property of an exclusive few. 

Once the printing press took off, though, books were published by the tens of thousands, literacy increased exponentially.  This, no doubt laid the foundation for the Enlightenment, built as it was upon the rights of man and the investigation of knowledge through empiricism, which provided a none-too desired retrenchment from the authority of the church.  Martin Luther and Erasmus were among the most popular authors after the advent of the printing press!

But today, we face the foreseable demise of the book, that delicious and delightful instrument of knowledge, of fancy and entertainment.  I love the feel of a book as you hold it, carry it, turn its pages and absorb the written word.  I work on a computer all day!  The last thing I want to do is read for my own satisfaction on a screen. I will always have books, though I have come to a place where it has become absolutely necessary to start purging my collection because of space.  I want to make tribute to the book and its sacred temple, the library.  I have assembled a list of the most visually stunning libraries in the world, in my humble opinion.  These libraries play to my architectural and interior design sensibilities.  None of the modern libraries are included because I find their austerity unappealing. 

The Royal Library, El Escorial, Spain

Abbey Library of St. Gall, Switzerland

Admont Abbey Library, Austria

Melk Monastery Library, Austria



University of Coibria General Library, Coimbria, Portugal

Library of Queens College, Oxford, England

The Library at Wiblingen Monastery, Ulm, Germany

Canadian Library of Parliament, Ottawa, Canada

The Library at the University Club, New York, NY

Stiftsbibliotek, Kleusterneuburg, Austria

The Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., USA

Some of the most visually stunning libraries in the world are in Austria. I would love to go to Austria just to tour the libraries of the abbeys.  For the longest time monks were the only ones with access to books.  Imagine the unbridled, unfathomable treasures in the Vatican library!  In the 20th century the libraries of the great colleges are what drew many applicants to Harvard and Yale and other prestigious colleges and universities.  Sadly many of these libraries today have become testaments to modernism, celebrating austerity and sleekness. 

God bless the book!  God bless knowledge!  God bless the Library!