Throughout the world, there are libraries and there are libraries. And then there is the
British Library.
Within its walls are an astounding 150 million items, including 14 million books and 3 million sound recordings, making it the largest library in the world. Some artefacts housed here date back to 300BC.
The library, which is the national library of the UK, is free to enter and open every day. It doesn't operate in quite the same way as your local library – you need, for example, special permission to use the reading rooms – but then your local library probably doesn't have lyrics to A Hard Day's Night written in John Lennon's very own hand either.
There are several permanent galleries which are recommended. The first of these is the
Sir John Ritblat Gallery, home to what the library calls "its greatest treasures". Here you'll find the 1215
Magna Carta, as well as the
Gutenberg Bible.
You can also gaze in awe at some of
Leonardo da Vinci's notebooks, full of sketches in his own hand - this guy was thinking about helicopters, parachutes and submarines long before they actually came into existence.
Materials from more recent times include, as already mentioned, handwritten lyrics by John Lennon, as well as lyrics penned by George Harrison in 1967 for a song that was never recorded.
You can see the very first draft of Handel's
Messiah, as well as work and artefacts belonging to other composers such as Beethoven and Haydn. You can even take a look at Mozart's marriage contract!
The handwritten original of Alice in Wonderland, penned by Lewis Carroll, is also on display, as are original manuscripts by Oscar Wilde and Jane Austen.
This is just a small part of what you can enjoy in the Sir John Ritblat Gallery.
There's also the
Philatelic Exhibition (80,000 items!) where you can see some of the world's oldest and rarest stamps.
Finally there's the Conservation Uncovered exhibition where you can find out about how these precious items are preserved for our enjoyment.
The library also puts on special exhibitions throughout the year. Click
here to find out what's coming up.
If you want to use the library's reading rooms, click
here to find out how. Passes are issued according to need, though for many the main motivation for visiting is to enjoy the splendid galleries.
