Library of Trinity College Dublin, University library within Trinity College, Ireland
The main reading room extends 65 meters in length, containing dark wooden shelves filled with 200,000 historical volumes reaching up to the barrel-vaulted ceiling.
Established in 1592 during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, the library began as a small collection and grew to become Ireland's largest repository of books.
The library safeguards the Book of Kells, an illuminated manuscript from 800 AD containing the four Gospels of the New Testament in Latin text.
The library opens daily from 9:30 AM, with different sections offering varied access hours, including 24-hour spaces for students during examination periods.
The Long Room houses the Brian Boru harp, a medieval instrument from the 15th century that became the national symbol of Ireland.
Location: Dublin
Inception: 1592
Part of: Trinity College Dublin
Website: http://tcd.ie/Library
GPS coordinates: 53.34381,-6.25464
Latest update: November 19, 2025 07:39
European historic libraries and bookshops preserve written heritage accumulated over centuries. From Livraria Bertrand in Lisbon, founded in 1732 and still operating at the same location, to the Bodleian Library in Oxford, which has housed over 13 million works since 1602, these sites reflect the evolution and dissemination of books. Livraria Lello in Porto is notable for its curved wooden staircase and neo-Gothic woodwork from 1906, while Dominicanen Bookshop in Maastricht is housed in a converted 13th-century church. These spaces are distinguished by their architecture, from baroque to neo-Gothic, and by their function preserved across centuries. The Celsus Library in Izmir, built in 135 AD, used double walls to protect its 12,000 parchments from humidity. Hatchards in London has been operating since 1797 over five floors in Piccadilly, whereas Shakespeare and Company in Paris has maintained its English-language tradition since 1951 opposite Notre-Dame. These institutions offer visitors the chance to explore places where the history of the book is engraved in stone and wood.
Ireland offers photographers a combination of historical structures, landscape formations and coastal sections. The island contains medieval fortresses such as Blarney Castle and Rock of Cashel, basalt formations at Giant's Causeway, and early medieval monastery sites at Glendalough. Trinity College Library in Dublin displays historical architecture, while Kilmainham Gaol provides insights into 19th and 20th century Irish history. Natural formations include the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare, rising 702 feet (214 meters) above the Atlantic, and the prehistoric burial mound at Newgrange in County Meath. The Dark Hedges in County Antrim form a tunnel of 18th century beech trees. National parks such as Killarney, Connemara and Glenveagh show different landscape types from lake districts to moorland. Coastal sections along the Ring of Kerry and Dingle Peninsula, plus smaller locations like Hook Head Lighthouse and Cobh, complete the island's geographic range.
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