Russian State Library
Russian State Library, National library in Arbat District, Moscow, Russia.
The Russian State Library extends across multiple buildings with 36 reading rooms providing space for 1,500 visitors to access over 47 million documents simultaneously.
Founded in 1862 as part of Moscow Public and Rumyantsev Museums, the library received the Order of Lenin in 1945 for its contributions to education and research.
The library maintains collections in 360 languages, including the Voltaire Library containing 7,000 volumes with original notes from the French writer.
The library opens Monday through Saturday from 9:00 AM to 8:00 PM, requiring visitors aged 14 and older to present identification for entrance.
The Digital Library platform provides access to 650,000 scanned documents, including manuscripts from the sixth century and early printed works like the Gutenberg Bible.
Location: Arbat District
Location: Moscow
Inception: 1862
Official opening: 1862
Address: ул. Воздвиженка 3/5
Website: https://rsl.ru/en
GPS coordinates: 55.75173,37.60900
Latest update: May 28, 2025 18:20
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.
Moscow offers photographers numerous subjects: Saint Basil's Cathedral with its colored domes, the Bolshoi Theatre, the Kremlin and modern art galleries. The city combines historical architecture, parks, museums and contemporary buildings. From Stalin's skyscrapers to Zaryadye Park with its floating bridge, Moscow presents itself as a metropolis of contrasts.
Shchusev State Museum of Architecture
131 m
Statue of Fyodor Dostoyevsky in Moscow
61 m
Крестовоздвиженский монастырь (Москва)
189 m
Talyzin's house (Vozdvizhenka)
123 m
Church of Saint Nicholas in Old Vagankovo
190 m
Дом Разумовского — Шереметева
171 m
The building of the Kremlin polyclinic on Vozdvizhenka
135 m
Дом Разумовского
197 m
Трапезная палата Нового Аптекарского двора (Арбат)
93 m
Доходный дом М. А. Егоровой-Скарчинской
168 m
Building of the Alexander Podvorie
97 m
Главный дом (Арбат)
123 m
Mokhovaya Street 7 Moscow
173 m
Двухэтажный флигель (Арбат)
96 m
Северный флигель (конюшни) (Арбат)
185 m
Служебные корпуса (Тверской)
167 m
Жилой дом прокурора Синодальной конторы (Арбат)
185 m
Ограда (Тверской)
193 m
Флигель во дворе с полуциркульной стеной (Арбат)
104 m
Главный дом (Арбат)
164 m
Меблированные комнаты «Петергоф» (Арбат)
124 m
Флигель (Тверской)
181 m
Южный флигель (Арбат)
161 m
Дом садовника (Арбат)
123 m
Усадьба Талызиных. Конюшня (Арбат)
147 m
Дом, в котором в 1908-1911 гг. жил и работал художник В.А. Серов (Арбат)
96 m
Северный боковой флигель (Арбат)
189 m
Ограда с воротами (Арбат)
148 mReviews
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