Russian Books Rooms

 

"... In this room, six pairs of columns support a plafond which opens in the middle in the form of a rectangle. Bookcases are placed, like in the Oxford library, back to back, crosswise, to make up four sections. Between sections there is a wide passage, decorated with statues of muses and busts of glorious men of antiquity..."  

"At the half bookcase height, there is a gallery, linking with the galleries of all the next rooms by doorways cut through the walls ..."

 

Imperial Public Library Guidebook. 1860

HISTORICAL REFERENCE

The Oval Room was adjoined by two large two-story rooms, divided into three parts by Ionic colonnades that supported wooden galleries. Statues and busts stood on pedestals near the columns. All galleries were used as storage and reading areas. At the same time, they served as passages to the corner rooms on the second floor. The galleries were reached by corner stairs, placed between the central room and the wall of the main facade.

1880s

2010s

 

Unfortunately, the original interiors of the first floor of the Sokolov Building have not come down to us. The look of the rooms was completely transformed in the 1860s then wooden ceilings were replaced with brick vaults. Pylons, decorated with mosaics, were installed instead of the graceful Ionic columns in the rooms on the first floor. Cast-iron balustrades appeared instead of wooden ones. The valuable previous decoration was largely dismantled. The reason for these renovations was the vital need to protect the Library from fire and add more space for bookshelves.

Today the rooms houses the Russian Books Collection.

Learn more about Russian Books Collections.

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