Manchester Central Library
Encyclopedia
Manchester Central Library is a circular library
south of the extended Town Hall
in Manchester
, England
. It acts as the headquarters of the Manchester Library & Information Service
, which also consists of 22 other community libraries.
Designed by E. Vincent Harris, the library was constructed between 1930 and 1934, but because of its traditional neoclassical architecture it is often mistakenly thought to be much older. At its opening one critic wrote "This is the sort of thing which persuades one to believe in the perennial applicability of the Classical canon". The form of the building, a columned portico attached to a rotunda
domed structure, is loosely derived from the Pantheon, Rome
.
The library building is grade II* listed. In 2011, a three year project to renovate the library was started. Reconstruction will cost £170m and the library will be closed until 2014.
, the striking rotunda
form of the Manchester Central Library was inspired by the Pantheon in Rome. Like its 2nd-century model, the library is a round building fronted by a large portico
. This two-storey portico forms the main entrance on St. Peter's Square, and is surrounded by five bays of Corinthian columns. Around the second and third floors is a Tuscan
colonnade
, topped by a band of unrelieved Portland stone
.
The pitched leaded roof appears from street level to be a dome, but this is only a surrounding roof. The dome that can be seen from within the Great Hall lies within this roof, and cannot be seen from the ground.
Harris took much of his inspiration for the interior design from new trends in library design in the United States
.
On the first floor is the Great Hall, a large reading room topped by a dome. Much of the original furniture designed by the architect can be seen on this floor. Around the rim of the dome is an inscription from the Book of Proverbs
in the Old Testament
:
In former years the dome's acoustics
caused an echo
problem, which repeated several times any short noise made in the room. Adding sound-absorbing material has made this echo much less.
The Shakespeare Hall is an ornate chamber displaying local heraldry and with large stained glass
windows. The central window was designed by Robert Anning Bell
and depicts William Shakespeare
and scenes from his plays. Two side windows designed by George Kruger Gray
depict the coats of arms of the City of Manchester, the University of Manchester
, and the County and Duchy of Lancaster
. The windows were a memorial bequest to the library by Rosa E. Grindon (1948-1923), the widow of Manchester botanist Leo Grindon.
The ceiling decorations include the arms and crests of the Duchy of Lancaster, the See of York
, the See of Manchester
, the City of Manchester, and Lancashire County Council
. The walls of Shakespeare Hall are covered with Hopton Wood stone quarried in Derbyshire
. On the walls are the arms of The Manchester Grammar School
, Manchester University, the Manchester Regiment, Humphrey Chetham
, the Overseers of the Township, England, St. George, St. Mary (patron saint of Manchester), and over the memorial window, Shakespeare.
On the left landing is a white marble
statue, the Reading Girl by the Italian sculptor Giovanni Ciniselli. It was bought by the industrialist and promoter of the Manchester Ship Canal
, Daniel Adamson
. The statue was presented to the library by his grandchildren, the Parkyn family, in 1938.
Beneath the Great Hall lie four floors of book stacks providing 35 miles of shelving which accommodate one million books. The floors are only accessible to employees and are environmentally controlled to protect books, many of which are old and in a fragile condition.
reminisced on the opening of the new library: The new Central Library which replaced the chicken house was an imposing circular structure with an enormous reading room, a small theatre and carrels where serious students could carry on their research without interruption. The portico of the magnificent edifice quickly became a popular rendezvous and "Meet you at the Ref" became a familiar phrase on the lips of students, lovers and unemployed youths. I was there on the opening day and on many days thereafter; the Ref played an important part in my life for I made many friends there.
The library was declared open by King George V on 17 July 1934. George V declared to the crowd: "In the splendid building which I am about to open, the largest library in this country provided by a local authority, the Corporation have ensured for the inhabitants of the city magnificent opportunities for further education and for the pleasant use of leisure."
An employee at the library who was present on opening day said: "When it was being built the public were very intrigued about its final appearance - they were used to rectangular buildings and the shape of the girders used seemed to make little sense. I remember families coming in first to "gawp" ... Under the portico became a favourite trysting place. In all, the shape of the building was its best advertisement and it was never necessary to put a notice 'Public Library' on the outside."
The Library is closed from 2010 to 2013 for major refurbishment and expansion. Some of its services will be available at a temporary location nearby.
- A new community library for the city centre on Deansgate
is planned. The community library occupies Elliott House (between Lloyd Street and Jackson's Row). During the closure its books are stored in a disused part of the Winsford salt mine.
The library collections include over 30 incunabula (books published before 1500) and a large number of first and early editions of major works. The special collections include:
, the famous novelist who wrote the cult classic A Clockwork Orange
, was a regular visitor to the library during his school days. In a volume of his autobiography, Little Wilson and Big God
(1987) he recounted his seduction by a librarian in the card catalogue. Morrissey
, former lead singer of The Smiths
, also studied in the library for his A Level exams. Having once tried to use the Language & Literature Library for an unofficial photo session, he was asked to leave by the librarian who did not know who he was.
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
south of the extended Town Hall
Manchester Town Hall
Manchester Town Hall is a Victorian-era, Neo-gothic municipal building in Manchester, England. The building functions as the ceremonial headquarters of Manchester City Council and houses a number of local government departments....
in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It acts as the headquarters of the Manchester Library & Information Service
Manchester Library & Information Service
There are 23 public libraries in Manchester, England, including the famous Central Library in St Peter’s Square, as well as a fleet of mobile libraries.The oldest community library still in use is Levenshulme Library in South Manchester, built in 1903...
, which also consists of 22 other community libraries.
Designed by E. Vincent Harris, the library was constructed between 1930 and 1934, but because of its traditional neoclassical architecture it is often mistakenly thought to be much older. At its opening one critic wrote "This is the sort of thing which persuades one to believe in the perennial applicability of the Classical canon". The form of the building, a columned portico attached to a rotunda
Rotunda (architecture)
A rotunda is any building with a circular ground plan, sometimes covered by a dome. It can also refer to a round room within a building . The Pantheon in Rome is a famous rotunda. A Band Rotunda is a circular bandstand, usually with a dome...
domed structure, is loosely derived from the Pantheon, Rome
Pantheon, Rome
The Pantheon ,Rarely Pantheum. This appears in Pliny's Natural History in describing this edifice: Agrippae Pantheum decoravit Diogenes Atheniensis; in columnis templi eius Caryatides probantur inter pauca operum, sicut in fastigio posita signa, sed propter altitudinem loci minus celebrata.from ,...
.
The library building is grade II* listed. In 2011, a three year project to renovate the library was started. Reconstruction will cost £170m and the library will be closed until 2014.
Architecture
Designed by architect E Vincent HarrisVincent Harris
Emanuel Vincent Harris OBE, RA was an English architect who designed several important public buildings.He was born in Devonport, Devon and educated at Kingsbridge Grammar School. He was articled to the Plymouth architect James Harvey in 1893; in 1897 he moved to London where he assisted E. Keynes...
, the striking rotunda
Rotunda (architecture)
A rotunda is any building with a circular ground plan, sometimes covered by a dome. It can also refer to a round room within a building . The Pantheon in Rome is a famous rotunda. A Band Rotunda is a circular bandstand, usually with a dome...
form of the Manchester Central Library was inspired by the Pantheon in Rome. Like its 2nd-century model, the library is a round building fronted by a large portico
Portico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls...
. This two-storey portico forms the main entrance on St. Peter's Square, and is surrounded by five bays of Corinthian columns. Around the second and third floors is a Tuscan
Tuscan order
Among canon of classical orders of classical architecture, the Tuscan order's place is due to the influence of the Italian Sebastiano Serlio, who meticulously described the five orders including a "Tuscan order", "the solidest and least ornate", in his fourth book of Regole generalii di...
colonnade
Colonnade
In classical architecture, a colonnade denotes a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building....
, topped by a band of unrelieved Portland stone
Portland stone
Portland stone is a limestone from the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. The quarries consist of beds of white-grey limestone separated by chert beds. It has been used extensively as a building stone throughout the British Isles, notably in major...
.
The pitched leaded roof appears from street level to be a dome, but this is only a surrounding roof. The dome that can be seen from within the Great Hall lies within this roof, and cannot be seen from the ground.
Harris took much of his inspiration for the interior design from new trends in library design in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
On the first floor is the Great Hall, a large reading room topped by a dome. Much of the original furniture designed by the architect can be seen on this floor. Around the rim of the dome is an inscription from the Book of Proverbs
Book of Proverbs
The Book of Proverbs , commonly referred to simply as Proverbs, is a book of the Hebrew Bible.The original Hebrew title of the book of Proverbs is "Míshlê Shlomoh" . When translated into Greek and Latin, the title took on different forms. In the Greek Septuagint the title became "paroimai paroimiae"...
in the Old Testament
Old Testament
The Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...
:
In former years the dome's acoustics
Acoustics
Acoustics is the interdisciplinary science that deals with the study of all mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids including vibration, sound, ultrasound and infrasound. A scientist who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician while someone working in the field of acoustics...
caused an echo
Echo (phenomenon)
In audio signal processing and acoustics, an echo is a reflection of sound, arriving at the listener some time after the direct sound. Typical examples are the echo produced by the bottom of a well, by a building, or by the walls of an enclosed room and an empty room. A true echo is a single...
problem, which repeated several times any short noise made in the room. Adding sound-absorbing material has made this echo much less.
The Shakespeare Hall is an ornate chamber displaying local heraldry and with large stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
windows. The central window was designed by Robert Anning Bell
Robert Anning Bell
Robert Anning Bell was an English artist and designer.He was born in London in 1863, the son of Robert George Bell, a cheesemonger, and Mary Charlotte Knight. He studied at University College School, the Westminster College of Art and the Royal Academy Schools, followed by a time in Paris. On...
and depicts William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
and scenes from his plays. Two side windows designed by George Kruger Gray
George Kruger Gray
George Edward Kruger Gray was an English artist, best remembered for his designs of coinage and stained glass windows.-Coinage:...
depict the coats of arms of the City of Manchester, the University of Manchester
Victoria University of Manchester
The Victoria University of Manchester was a university in Manchester, England. On 1 October 2004 it merged with the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology to form a new entity, "The University of Manchester".-1851 - 1951:The University was founded in 1851 as Owens College,...
, and the County and Duchy of Lancaster
Duchy of Lancaster
The Duchy of Lancaster is one of the two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Cornwall. It is held in trust for the Sovereign, and is used to provide income for the use of the British monarch...
. The windows were a memorial bequest to the library by Rosa E. Grindon (1948-1923), the widow of Manchester botanist Leo Grindon.
The ceiling decorations include the arms and crests of the Duchy of Lancaster, the See of York
Archbishop of York
The Archbishop of York is a high-ranking cleric in the Church of England, second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury. He is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and metropolitan of the Province of York, which covers the northern portion of England as well as the Isle of Man...
, the See of Manchester
Anglican Diocese of Manchester
The Diocese of Manchester is a Church of England diocese in the Province of York, England. Based in the city of Manchester, the diocese covers much of the county of Greater Manchester and small areas of the counties of Lancashire and Cheshire.-History:...
, the City of Manchester, and Lancashire County Council
Lancashire County Council
Lancashire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Lancashire, England. It currently consists of 84 councillors, and is controlled by the Conservative Party, who won control of the council in the local council elections in June 2009, ending 28 years of...
. The walls of Shakespeare Hall are covered with Hopton Wood stone quarried in Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
. On the walls are the arms of The Manchester Grammar School
Manchester Grammar School
The Manchester Grammar School is the largest independent day school for boys in the UK . It is based in Manchester, England...
, Manchester University, the Manchester Regiment, Humphrey Chetham
Humphrey Chetham
Sir Humphrey Chetham was an English merchant, responsible for the creation of Chetham's Hospital and Chetham's Library, the oldest public library in the English-speaking world.- Life :...
, the Overseers of the Township, England, St. George, St. Mary (patron saint of Manchester), and over the memorial window, Shakespeare.
On the left landing is a white marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
statue, the Reading Girl by the Italian sculptor Giovanni Ciniselli. It was bought by the industrialist and promoter of the Manchester Ship Canal
Manchester Ship Canal
The Manchester Ship Canal is a river navigation 36 miles long in the North West of England. Starting at the Mersey Estuary near Liverpool, it generally follows the original routes of the rivers Mersey and Irwell through the historic counties of Cheshire and Lancashire. Several sets of locks lift...
, Daniel Adamson
Daniel Adamson
Daniel Adamson was a notable English engineer who became a successful manufacturer of boilers and was the driving force behind the inception of the Manchester Ship Canal project during the 1880s.-Early life:...
. The statue was presented to the library by his grandchildren, the Parkyn family, in 1938.
Beneath the Great Hall lie four floors of book stacks providing 35 miles of shelving which accommodate one million books. The floors are only accessible to employees and are environmentally controlled to protect books, many of which are old and in a fragile condition.
Opening
Central Library opened in 1934 to much fanfare. Famous singer-songwriter Ewan MacCollEwan MacColl
Ewan MacColl was an English folk singer, songwriter, socialist, actor, poet, playwright, and record producer. He was married to theatre director Joan Littlewood, and later to American folksinger Peggy Seeger. He collaborated with Littlewood in the theatre and with Seeger in folk music...
reminisced on the opening of the new library: The new Central Library which replaced the chicken house was an imposing circular structure with an enormous reading room, a small theatre and carrels where serious students could carry on their research without interruption. The portico of the magnificent edifice quickly became a popular rendezvous and "Meet you at the Ref" became a familiar phrase on the lips of students, lovers and unemployed youths. I was there on the opening day and on many days thereafter; the Ref played an important part in my life for I made many friends there.
The library was declared open by King George V on 17 July 1934. George V declared to the crowd: "In the splendid building which I am about to open, the largest library in this country provided by a local authority, the Corporation have ensured for the inhabitants of the city magnificent opportunities for further education and for the pleasant use of leisure."
An employee at the library who was present on opening day said: "When it was being built the public were very intrigued about its final appearance - they were used to rectangular buildings and the shape of the girders used seemed to make little sense. I remember families coming in first to "gawp" ... Under the portico became a favourite trysting place. In all, the shape of the building was its best advertisement and it was never necessary to put a notice 'Public Library' on the outside."
2010-2014 renovation
Reports emerged in 2008 that the Central Library needed essential renovation to repair and modernise facilities. The Library faced asbestos problems and needed work to maintain its `structural integrity'.The Library is closed from 2010 to 2013 for major refurbishment and expansion. Some of its services will be available at a temporary location nearby.
- A new community library for the city centre on Deansgate
Deansgate
Deansgate is a main road through the city centre of Manchester, England. It runs roughly north–south in a near straight route through the western part of the city centre and is the longest road in the city centre at over one mile long....
is planned. The community library occupies Elliott House (between Lloyd Street and Jackson's Row). During the closure its books are stored in a disused part of the Winsford salt mine.
Collections
There are four tiers of steel book stacks in the building. The first level is just underneath the Great Hall and the fourth level, the Archive unit, is in the basement of the building. There are 3,600 stack columns supporting approximately 45,000 shelves. Placed end to end, they would cover a distance of over 35 miles (56 km). The total floor area is about 7000 square yards (5,852.9 m²) .The library collections include over 30 incunabula (books published before 1500) and a large number of first and early editions of major works. The special collections include:
- The Gaskell Collection - works by Elizabeth GaskellElizabeth GaskellElizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell, née Stevenson , often referred to simply as Mrs Gaskell, was a British novelist and short story writer during the Victorian era...
, one of the most important writers to have lived and worked in the city - The Theatre Collection - a record of the history of theatreTheatreTheatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
in Manchester - The Newman Flower Collection of Handel Manuscripts - works by George Frederic Handel, as well as items of Italian music from the early 18th century, including the Manchester Violin Sonatas by Antonio VivaldiAntonio VivaldiAntonio Lucio Vivaldi , nicknamed because of his red hair, was an Italian Baroque composer, priest, and virtuoso violinist, born in Venice. Vivaldi is recognized as one of the greatest Baroque composers, and his influence during his lifetime was widespread over Europe...
(previously undiscovered violin sonatas autographed by the composer) and the Four SeasonsThe Four Seasons (Vivaldi)The Four Seasons is a set of four violin concertos by Antonio Vivaldi. Composed in 1723, The Four Seasons is Vivaldi's best-known work, and is among the most popular pieces of Baroque music. The texture of each concerto is varied, each resembling its respective season...
concerto partbooks.
Library Theatre
The Library Theatre was located in the basement of Manchester Central Library and was the home of the Library Theatre Company, a Manchester City Council service. The theatre occupied most of the library's basement. It was originally built in 1934 as a lecture theatre, and since 1952 had been used by the Library Theatre Company. A 'new' theatre is to open on First Street in partnership with Cornerhouse Manchester in 2014. In the meantime, the Library Theatre continues its work at other venues around the region.Famous names
A number of famous figures have been associated with Central Library. One of Manchester's most famous sons, the conductor Sir John Barbirolli, was a regular user of the Music Library. Anthony BurgessAnthony Burgess
John Burgess Wilson – who published under the pen name Anthony Burgess – was an English author, poet, playwright, composer, linguist, translator and critic. The dystopian satire A Clockwork Orange is Burgess's most famous novel, though he dismissed it as one of his lesser works...
, the famous novelist who wrote the cult classic A Clockwork Orange
A Clockwork Orange
A Clockwork Orange is a 1962 dystopian novella by Anthony Burgess. The novel contains an experiment in language: the characters often use an argot called "Nadsat", derived from Russian....
, was a regular visitor to the library during his school days. In a volume of his autobiography, Little Wilson and Big God
Little Wilson and Big God, Being the First Part of the Confessions of Anthony Burgess
Little Wilson and Big God, volume I of Anthony Burgess's autobiography, was first published by Heinemann in 1986. It won the J. R. Ackerley Prize for Autobiography....
(1987) he recounted his seduction by a librarian in the card catalogue. Morrissey
Morrissey
Steven Patrick Morrissey , known as Morrissey, is an English singer and lyricist. He rose to prominence in the 1980s as the lyricist and vocalist of the alternative rock band The Smiths. The band was highly successful in the United Kingdom but broke up in 1987, and Morrissey began a solo career,...
, former lead singer of The Smiths
The Smiths
The Smiths were an English alternative rock band, formed in Manchester in 1982. Based on the song writing partnership of Morrissey and Johnny Marr , the band also included Andy Rourke and Mike Joyce...
, also studied in the library for his A Level exams. Having once tried to use the Language & Literature Library for an unofficial photo session, he was asked to leave by the librarian who did not know who he was.
Statistics
In 1968 it was recorded that the adult lending stock was 895,000, the adult reference stock 638,200, the junior stock 114,600, a total of nearly one and two thirds of a million volumes. There were about 2,000 reading places and an estimated 10,000 people visited the library each day. There were subscriptions to 3,000 periodicals.External links
- Central Library homepage
- History of Manchester Central Library
- Local image collection - contains historical photographs of the library
- The Library Theatre
- What's On At The Library Theatre, Manchester