This was one of the most lovely and saddening places we visited in London. I'm sure most of you recognize the iconic image of the inside of the British Museum with the warped glass ceiling that surrounds a cylinder shaped room. For those of you who are unfamiliar, here's a photo:
The museum was already bustling with people upon our arrival. Between the café, bookstore, and all the morning museum goers, the space was full of energy and noise. Once we met our guide she took us into the library. Entering the room was like entering another world. The noise from the busy museum was immediately gone and replaced by a deafening silence. The domed room had a gold, blue and white ceiling with windows shining sunlight into the room. As my eyes moved down and around the room they fell on the three rows of shelves that lined the room. It was like walking into a dream. The first floor currently holds the library's archive collections that is being sorted through currently in order to be cataloged. The second and third floors held ......
As I mentioned before, this was one of the most saddening places we went to. The reading room is no longer open to the public. Mainly because the British Library established itself separately from the museum in 1972. The museum has dedicated itself to being more of a museum and archive and not focused on public and research use. Thus, this gorgeous and historically noteworthy space is no longer used by the public and only seen by the two staff members who busy themselves in processing the unprocessed archive collection. Regardless, this space was one of my favorite in all of London!
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