Latvian National Library

The National Library opened in 2014 on the Daugava's left bank to a design by Gunnar Birkerts, a Latvian-born American architect, who took the folk motif of the glass mountain and the sunken castle that rises again as the starting point: the building is a long asymmetrical slope of glass and steel climbing to a peak, known as Gaismas pils, the castle of light. Inside, an atrium runs the full height with reading rooms terraced up the sides and the People's Bookshelf, a wall of volumes donated by the public, rising through it. Exhibition halls, a cafe and a roof terrace with a view back to the old town across the river are open without registration.

History

The library was founded on 29 August 1919 as the State Library, and its first chief librarian, Jānis Misiņš, made his large private collection the basis of it; by 1920 its stocks had reached 250,000 volumes (Wikipedia, National Library of Latvia).

Highlights

• The glass slope - the building's form rising from the riverbank.
• The atrium - the full-height space with its terraced reading rooms.
• The People's Bookshelf - the wall of donated books through the atrium.
• The roof view - the old town skyline across the Daugava.

When to go

Year round; the building is indoors and open through the week, closing on Sundays and reducing hours in summer. Exhibitions change regularly. The roof terrace works best on a clear day.

Things to know

Reading rooms require registration and are working spaces, not exhibits. Roof terrace access can be closed in wind or for events. The building divides opinion sharply. The area around it on the left bank is otherwise unremarkable.

Nearby

Riga old town lies across the Stone Bridge; the central market is northeast.

Key facts