| Duration: | 3 Hour(s) - 0 Minute(s) |
| Tour Category: | Half Day Tour |
The National Library is a landmark of Belarus.
This is a multipurpose center that combines high technologies, ultramodern design and unique architecture.
National Library history starts in 1922 when it was founded under the aegis of the Belarusian State University and Initially contained 60,000 books. Later In 1926 the Belarusian State Library became an independent institution. During the Great Patriotic War the Belarusian State Library named after Lenin lost about 83% of its books and special equipment. It managed to evacuate all the rare and early printed books, editions stored in the circulation department and reading halls while the reserve fund building burnt down completely together with what was inside.After the war the library was reborn and developed, collecting more books and establishing international ties.
In 1992 as part of the sovereign state it was renamed into the National Library of Belarus.
With time its collections grew much larger, requiring the construction of new, larger, and modern premises. In 1989 a USSR-wide contest was held to choose the best architectural design for the Library. The winners – architects Viktor Kramarenko and Mikhail Vinogradov – suggested the Belarusian diamond design that combines functionality and modern design solutions.
The design envisaged the construction of an original building in the shape of a rhombicuboctahedron — a complex polyhedron of 18 squares and 8 trianglesresting on a supporting podium (stylobate). The surface of the diamond is covered by heat-reflecting mirror glass.
The authors wanted the cut diamond shape to symbolize the value of knowledge and the endlessness of the perceptible world.
The space of the building is multifunctional and boasts modern equipment.
The total area of the building is 113,669m2 or one fourth of the Vatican territory. The building weighs 140,000 tonnes, roughly 14 times as much as the Eiffel Tower (about 270,000 tonnes with books and equipment
The collection of the "diamond of knowledge" contains about 9 million editions on various media. Those are printed editions, manuscripts, microcopies, digital materials and other materials created in Belarus and abroad in over 80 languages.
Main part of the collections is located on ten floors of the storage facility. Over 500,000 copies are available for public access and in reading halls. Digital resources can be accessed via computers in the Library while some are available via the Internet
A center for international meetings and negotiations boasts multifunctional modern equipment and special communication solutions and allows hosting top political, cultural, and educational events.
Every year the Library hosts culture days of individual nations. The days involve exhibitions of books, paintings, and photos.
As a unique feature of the architectural design the book storage facility is located in the upper part of the building for the sake of waterproofing and enabling comfortable conditions for the books.
On the first floor you can find the information and registration desk, a tour office in the entrance hall.
The Library has special workstations for blind people and visually handicapped people, people with physical disabilities.
The open-air skydeck is worth mentioning. It is located 73m above the ground in the upper part of the Library’s book storage facility. Over there visitors can admire the view of the Belarusian capital and take a look at remote locations using a panoramic binocular.
There are various educational tours to the National Library
Address: 116, Nezavisimosti Ave, Minsk, Belarus
