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MADRID
Biblioteca Nacional
You don’t need to be a bookworm to appreciate a fine city library, and
if you visit Madrid and don't spend an hour or two at the Biblioteca Nacional
near the Plaza de Colón, you'll miss one of the city's finest attractions.
The facade alone is worth the visit. A lovely example of neoclassical
architecture, the building has three entrance archways and the whole is
constructed on grand and most impressive scale. Take a moment to look up and
enjoy the view of the upper galleries.
Elaborate wrought-iron gates grace the exterior and elegant carvings
festoon the Corinthian columns. On either side of the main staircase are
statues of Alfonso X and San Isidoro. Alongside the main doors are images of
many of Spain's literary luminaries including Cervantes and de Leon.
Constructed during the 19th century under the auspices of Isabel II, the
library contains more than five million books. Not the largest repository in
the world by any means, but unquestionably the finest collection of Spanish
volumes anywhere. The collection grew from an original nucleus which was the
royal library of Phillip V, founded in 1712. In some cases bought, in others
seized as part of an imperialist conqueror’s booty, the books cover every
conceivable aspect of Spain's culture and history.
The Biblioteca Nacional is regarded as the National Library of Spain and
the centerpiece of a system that has branches all over the country. Among the
millions of items are 30,000 manuscripts and 500,000 books printed before
1831, not to mention a newspaper collection of nearly 20,000 editions. Along
with the books and manuscripts, there are rare engravings and drawings, almost
two million photographs and 134,000 maps in the collection.
If you’re lucky, your visit to Madrid will coincide with one of the
Biblioteca Nacional’s frequently sponsored exhibitions… drawings by Rembrandt
and various works by other notable literary and artistic masters. You can
check the schedule at: http://www.bne.es/index_eng.html
Admission is free and the library is open year round.
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