John Rylands Library

The John Rylands Library at 150 Deansgate is one of the most striking Victorian buildings in Manchester, in north-west England. Completed in 1900 and built in Gothic Revival style, it was commissioned by Enriqueta Rylands in memory of her husband, the cotton magnate John Rylands. Today it forms part of the University of Manchester Library and is open to the public free of charge. Visitors enter through a red sandstone facade into a vaulted stair hall, then climb to the Historic Reading Room, a long, cathedral-like space with stone tracery, stained glass, carved figures and rows of dark wooden desks lit by green-shaded lamps. The ceiling vaults and the narrow clerestory windows give the room a hushed, church-like atmosphere, and it remains a working reading room for researchers, so quiet is expected. Exhibitions in the modern gallery space draw on the library's special collections, which include medieval manuscripts, early printed books and the Rylands Library Papyrus P52, a small fragment of St John's Gospel dated to the early second century and among the oldest surviving New Testament texts. A modern extension added in 2007 holds the cafe, the visitor reception and a lift, and links the historic building with a contemporary entrance. A typical visit lasts 45 to 60 minutes, though keen readers of architecture or book history can easily spend longer. The reading room is best photographed from the entrance end looking along the nave, and from the gallery level looking down onto the desks, though flash and tripods are generally restricted. Crowds build at weekends and during school holidays, when guided tours and events can fill the space. Weekday mornings are usually quietest. The library is a five-minute walk from the Metrolink stops at St Peter's Square and Deansgate-Castlefield, and sits close to the Spinningfields business district. Guided tours and talks run on selected days and add background on the building's construction, its Gothic detailing and the history of the Rylands family, so visitors with a particular interest may wish to check the schedule before arriving. The cafe in the extension is a convenient place to rest after the climb to the reading room, and the library shop sells books and gifts connected to the collections.