Czech library. National Library of the Czech Republic

The National Library of the Czech Republic (Národní knihovna ČR) is the oldest and largest public library in the country. It is subordinate to the Czech Ministry of Culture. It was founded by Charles IV in 1348 with the founding of Charles University. The most famous personalities made gifts to the library, including the founding king who gave the library a set of codices. In the 16th century, the Jesuit college Clementinum was built here, and at the beginning of the 17th century, Charles University came under the control of the Jesuits, which moved its library to Clementinum, which since then has almost exactly preserved its historical appearance, which attracts a huge number of tourists. With the liquidation of the Jesuit order in the 18th century, the library received the name Imperial-Royal Public Library. Over time, the library grew and the name changed. Since 1807, all Czech printing houses began to transfer legal deposit to the library. The name National Library appeared in 1990.
The hall is a clear example of a Baroque library. Inside you can see frescoes - the work of Joseph Dibel. They depict scenes dedicated to science and art. Amazing frescoes even cover the ceiling, and even the smallest detail of the interior is pure art. The frescoes on the ceiling were painted by Jan Hybl, who depicted allegorical motifs of education and portraits of Jesuit saints - patrons of the university and famous representatives of this order. Above the windows along the walls, portraits of prominent figures of the college are placed in triangular frames. At the entrance there is a picture of Joseph II, who enriched the national library in Clementinum with rare publications that were previously kept in closed monasteries. In the very center of the hall there are large globes. The library's collection consists mainly of theological books written in different languages.
The National Library is the largest library in the Czech Republic: its collections contain about 7 million copies], including 4,200 incunabula (that is, printed books published at the end of 1500). This is the largest collection of incunabula in the Czech Republic, while at the same time being one of the most extensive in Central Europe. The oldest element of the incunabula collection was until recently a single leaf from Johannes Gutenberg's Bible, the first masterpiece of printing, completed perhaps as early as 1454. Among the Clementinum incunabula, there are a number of world unique copies or editions known today and only a few copies have survived. The library is perfectly preserved and houses a large number of rare books that have been scanned by Google and will soon appear on the Google Books service.
The library achieved international recognition in 2005, receiving the inaugural Jikji Prize from UNESCO's Memory of the World Program for its contributions to the digitization of old texts. The project, which began work in 1992, digitized 1,700 documents in its first 13 years of operation.

Address: Klementinum 190, 110 00 Praha

Every student or great lover of printed literature knows how valuable the ability to use state libraries is. Below we would like to say a few words about those in the Czech Republic, and explain how you can gain access to public libraries in Prague.

Městská knihovna - State Library

Národní knihovna České republiky – National Library of the Czech Republic

Národní technická knihovna – National Technical Library

Among the many wonderful sights of magnificent Prague, the most notable is the Clementinum - a Jesuit college, which is a large complex of buildings in the Baroque style. It now houses the National Library of the Czech Republic.

Clementinum is located in the Old Town (Staré Město), near the famous Charles Bridge. This large-scale complex includes a number of buildings from the 18th century, the authors of which are such famous architects as Kilian Ignaz Dientzenhofer, Carlo Lurago, Frantisek Maximilian Kanka and other representatives of the Habsburg Baroque workshop.

The total area of ​​the Clementinum is 20,000 square meters. In terms of size, this historical and architectural complex is second only to the Prague Castle fortress (Pražský hrad). A large Jesuit college was created in Prague in 1552 on the site of the medieval chapel of St. Clement. By the 17th century, Clementinum had become one of the largest Jesuit centers in the world. in 1622, the library of Charles University, the main university of the Czech Republic and the oldest university in Central Europe, was located here.

At one time, the Clementinum library contained mysterious manuscripts dating from 1404 and 1438 by an unknown author. They were written in an incomprehensible language, so all attempts to decipher them remain unsuccessful to this day. The mysterious illustrated codex was called the Voynich Manuscript and is now kept in the Yale University Library.

The historic building of the Clementinum houses half of the collection of the Czech Central Library. In total, the National Library of the Czech Republic contains about seven million different books, including 4,200 incunabula - copies of extremely rare books that were published in Europe before 1501 in small editions of 100-300 pieces.

The hall of the National Library in the Clementinum is designed in the Baroque style and is distinguished by the luxury and splendor traditional for those times. This is one of the most beautiful halls of the Clementinum, which is decorated with frescoes by Joseph Dibel.

The National Library of the Czech Republic is open to public access and currently has about 60 thousand registered readers. Throughout the history of its existence, the library at Clementinum has made enormous contributions in the field of translations of ancient manuscripts and texts. Since 1992, the modern library began to digitize the documents stored in it. In 2005, the library was awarded the UNESCO Memory of the World Prize for its contribution.

) at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering of the Czech Technical University (Czech "České vysoké učení technické v Praze", abbr. "ČVUT"), describing the library of this modern technical university in Central Europe, founded in 1707.

The new library was built just a few years ago and is located in Prague, on the main campus of Tech. university.

After the opening, all technical libraries located in Prague began to move into the library, which received the name “National Technical Library” (Czech: “Národní technická knihovna”, abbr. “NTK”). Now the libraries of various technical faculties are scattered. The universities are located in one place, at the Dejvická metro station.

In addition, they are constantly updated with very modern and expensive literature in various languages ​​of the world. There is no need to purchase expensive rare literature - you can get it here practically for free (a six-month subscription costs 50 Czech crowns, i.e. 80 rubles).

The photo shows an example of an original NTK card, although in reality many people use university student cards, ISIC, city travel cards or In-Karta railway cards. The main thing is that there is an RFID tag inside the card; appearance does not play a role in registration.

The terminal will indicate the exact location of the book on a particular stand on one of the 6 above-ground floors.

It is possible that the required book is unpopular or rare and is located in one of the underground storage facilities - then it should be ordered in advance through the terminal or website. You can also order literature from a huge list of libraries in Germany, the USA, Great Britain, Spain, etc. As far as I understand, no additional payments are charged.

To take a book home, you should take it to a special terminal with a glass shelf, insert your membership card with a chip, and then the book. The machine will issue a receipt with information about the book, the date it was received and the required return period. Books are issued, as a rule, for 4 weeks - after which it can be extended or you can pay a daily fine of 1-2 crowns (2-3 rubles).

Returning books is much more interesting. There are windows for receiving books in several places at the entrance to the library. To return a book, you just need to place it in this window.

Then the cunning machine will close its belly, read the identification code from the chip and swallow the book. The book will be debited from your subscription and proceed along the conveyor to a sorting machine, which sorts the books into the correct departments for delivery by staff. The book collection windows are positioned very cleverly, with many of the windows allowing books to drop into just a few places so staff don't have to collect books from all over the building.

Issuing and receiving literature is as convenient as possible for both employees and visitors. But, of course, the most interesting part of such a modern library is the reading rooms. Everything here is created for the most comfortable pastime. Firstly, there is free high-speed WiFi everywhere (you need a reader's number and password for access). Of course, and sockets for laptops. Accordingly, there are a lot of people with laptops here.

WiFi covers not only all buildings and libraries, but simply the entire campus - you can lie on the lawn outside and enjoy high-speed access.

Secondly, on each floor there is a buffet with coffee and chocolate-cookie-baguette machines. In the Czech Republic, baguettes are very common among students - a long roll with various fillings. It’s hard to call a baguette a hamburger or a sandwich – I don’t know of any analogues in Russia. A baguette costs 30-50 CZK (48-80 rubles). In the NTK vending machine it costs the minimum price, 28-30 CZK. Coffee and tea - also at a minimum price, no more than 8-10 crowns (15 rubles). Prices inside universities are noticeably lower than even in supermarkets - as far as I know, the Czech government and universities compensate part of the cost, taking care of students’ pockets (although higher education in Czech in all state universities is free, paid only in English). By the way, a full hearty lunch (first course, second course, compote) in the university canteen costs approximately 50 crowns (80 rubles).

Thirdly, in the warm season you can go out on the 6th floor to one of the open terraces for fresh air. They are open now, but there are no people willing to sit at 10-15 degrees Celsius.

Moreover, the terraces fit harmoniously into the interior of the 6th floor and create additional lighting.

NTK has 29 individual classrooms (including 2 for the disabled and 2 for the visually impaired), 18 general reading rooms and 1 automated night reading room on the 1st floor (for a separate entrance from the street, just attach a library card). Like other public places, everything is equipped for access to the library by disabled people. Everything is done for people.

Design is a separate issue. The outside is glass:

Inside - concrete:

The librarian even noted that the construction of the library has already been completed and that there is no need to think that anything will change. I really like how all excursions are conducted in the Czech Republic - instead of the Russian “Don’t go here”, “Don’t take pictures”, “Don’t touch anything”, everything on the contrary asks you to touch, look, try.

The interiors of the library are original - cables and ventilation ducts are laid outside, and the concrete is not painted anywhere. But it all looks harmonious. The paintings on the walls were made by a Romanian artist named Dan Perjovschiho. Very extravagant, I must say, drawings.

You can move around the library on foot using the stairs:

By the way, everywhere on the steps the number of calories spent on climbing up to it from the first floor is indicated:

The width and height of objects are marked everywhere. The facade of the building indicates its perimeter and height. Individual elements are also marked inside - the width of the step, for example:

In order not to burn calories on the stairs between 9 floors, there are 4 modern, convenient elevators.

In general, there is everything, everything, everything - even a car parking for 300 spaces (underground, as I understand it), a bicycle parking for 200. Applicants walked around the building in admiration with their mouths open: “Wow! I want to study at ČVUT!”

The capital of the Czech Republic, Prague, has a wide variety of attractions and places that every tourist needs to visit. One of these treasures of Prague is the Clementinum - a whole group of buildings in the Baroque style, in ancient times it housed the Jesuit College, and now it houses the National Library of the Czech Republic. All buildings of the complex are located on a huge territory, and this complex is considered the second largest in terms of area after Prague Castle.

At the beginning of the thirteenth century, the Clementinum complex in Prague was considered a Dominican monastery, but during the period of hostilities, the monks’ home was quite destroyed, and all the buildings were in a dilapidated state for a long time.

In the mid-sixteenth century, the monastery building came into the possession of the Jesuits. Architect Wohlmut began work on the complex. Under his leadership, the monastery building expanded, with the addition of additional premises, the area of ​​the complex was also expanded. Designers from the province followed the exact instructions of the Roman generals, represented by the leading architect Karl Lurago.

Reconstruction of the complex continued until the order was dissolved at the end of the eighteenth century. The complex now has a large number of rooms for conducting lessons, a library, a theater studio, and even a printing house, which for two hundred years was the only one in the Czech Republic. At the end of the eighteenth century, all the buildings were in the possession of the archiepiscopal seminarians, and all the buildings were converted from the Baroque style to the early classicism style.

The entire ensemble consists of a series of closed two-story buildings with five courtyards. The main advantages of the Clementinum are: the astronomical and clock tower, as well as the structure of the printing house. Also be sure to look at the baroque-style sundial and the fountain-reservoir.

The interior of the classrooms is done in a restrained style, but the public places that promote faith are decorated with various types of artistic creativity. All rooms have remarkably preserved their original appearance.

One of the main parts of the ensemble is the Church of the Holy Savior, as well as a valuable shrine of the Jesuits. The most significant details in the church are considered to be the painting “four parts of the world” and the central altar. The interior is very beautifully decorated with sculptures and decorative elements. All members of the Jesuit order were buried in the church crypt.

The Cathedral of St. Clement was designed by the architects Luargo and Kanka. It has a strict façade, but the interior design is very beautiful. Paintings depicting scenes from the life of Clementius, painted by Gibel, divide the ceiling into four parts, the central altar is made of marble. The carved elements of Brown, the paintings of Brundle and others look very beautiful. The iconostasis was changed at the end of the twentieth century, ten pillars are considered a symbol of the apostles with the royal doors, the New and Old Testaments. But it doesn’t look very nice against the background of the overall interior. Now the church is considered an active Greek Catholic Church.

The most beautiful library in Prague today

Nowadays, the Clementinum complex houses the world-famous National Library, which at the beginning of the twentieth century underwent significant reconstruction; the most valuable books and manuscripts are stored here.

If you have a desire, then climb the Astronomical Tower, it is 68 meters high, when you climb to the very top, you will be able to look at the delightful old Prague from above. There is an elevator inside the tower that will take you to the height of the third floor. To get to the observation deck, you need to climb 87 very winding steps. But when you do it, you won't regret it.

At the beginning of the eighteenth century, the Hall of Mirrors was built, it was created by the famous Prague architect, German by birth, Kilian Ignaz Dientzenhofer. The Hall of Mirrors was so named because mirrors were built into the stucco moldings and walls.

It is noteworthy that this hall houses two organ instruments, an amazing phenomenon - the acoustic sounds are simply amazing. And these organs can play at the same time.

And it is clear that such acoustics should be used; concert programs are held in this hall, where classical music is played, and wedding celebrations are also celebrated here (this hall can accommodate up to 150 people).

In order to visit the mirror chapel, you must register in advance.

The Meridian Room was named after the Prague meridian, which is shown as a stretched arrow on the floor. There is a small hole in the wall and the sun's rays, falling through it, cross the arrow at astronomical noon. Today in this room you can look at the exhibition of astronomical instruments of past centuries.

Address on the map

The Clementinum in Prague has several entrances:

The first entrance is located at the following address: Karlova 1, Prague

The second entrance is located at the following address: Mariánské nám. 5, Prague

The third entrance is located at the following address: Křižovnická 190, Prague - you cannot temporarily enter through this entrance.

How to get there

You can get to Clementinum by taking bus number 194, which stops at the Mariánské náměstí stop. Also nearby is the Staroměstská station (green line A) and a tram stop, where trams numbers 1, 2, 17, 18, 25 and 93 go; you need to go to the Clementinum stop.

Opening hours

Clementinum was closed in January 2017 for reconstruction, presumably for two years. Only the Mirror Hall is open to the public, where concert programs are held.

• January-March: from 10:00 to 16:00;
• April-October: from 10:00 to 20:00;
• November-December: from 10:00 to 18:00.

From 10:00 every half hour there are guided tours (in Czech and English, there are also booklets in Russian) accompanied by a guide. The duration of the entire excursion is 45 minutes.

Cost of visit

In order to visit the Clementinum, you must pay the entrance fee:

• A full price ticket will cost 220 CZK;
• For a family consisting of one or two adults and up to three children, the entrance ticket costs 500 CZK;
• For children aged eight to eighteen years old, admission costs 140 CZK;
• Entrance to the Clementinum is free for students and disabled people;
• For children under seven years of age admission is free.

Official site

All necessary information is provided on the Clementinum website.