(Suzzallo Library; Seattle Washington; Photo by Priyaranjan Pattnayak)

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I’m beyond thankful that the Critiquing Chemist has celebrated two very exciting milestones in one week! Last week was my blogging anniversary, where I observed having been posting for over three years. I celebrated in true analytical fashion with a compilation of statistics, including a variety of pie charts.  This week I reached a milestone that The Science Geek has been predicting I would eventually reach all along! The Critiquing Chemist broke 4000 followers! Reflecting back on my beginnings as a blogger, I’m blown away and immensely grateful with the attention and support my blog has received over these fast flying years! Thank you everyone for your wonderful encouragement, as your interactions have made my day on a routine basis. As I started to near the 4000 follower mark, I started brainstorming as to an appropriate post to highlight this unbelievable event.  Initially, my goal was to create a list the top 10 most beautiful libraries in the world. I began this project by analytically assessing existing lists and compiling a new list composed of each unique library until the lists become redundant. At this point I thought I would be able to discern a pattern or at least a few names that would stand out above the rest.  Much to my amazement, my list of unique libraries kept growing and growing with every list I perused through, and my post naturally evolved into a collection that was a bit more ambitious as I’ve collected 150 beautiful libraries before the lists started repeating completely. I’ve divided the libraries into their specific continents and the lists are by no means in order of a specific ranking as they are all novel and wonderful in their own way.  You can find the websites I compiled my list from below.  Hopefully I didn’t accidentally leave one out. Of note, and a real shame, was of the six Google pages of results I ended up going through, there was only one African library listed. I had to specifically search for the top libraries in Africa to round out my  own list.

As this post is a celebration for the Critiquing Chemist, I’ve taken some bias liberties with the first three libraries. The first library listed, Waldron District Library, was my home town library. My mom was on the Friends of the Library committee and on the Library Board when I was growing up. She helped build this library, resulting in my brothers and me spending so many hours of our childhood, perusing the stacks for new and interesting titles. It was through this library that I became introduced to a wide variety of genres and authors, from V.C. Andrews to Stephen King, before venturing down more classical routes. I also have special memories of the Melvin J. Zahnow Library at  Saginaw Valley State University where I did my undergraduate work and at my graduate school library, Michigan State University Library.

Throughout this post I used either my own photos or images that were available on the public domain along with the proper photo credits given.  Any libraries do not have corresponding photos I could not find an available image. You should definitely Google them as all of the libraries are stunning on this list. Thank you again for all of your support of the years and I’m excited to see what the future holds! Please enjoy this list as much as I had a blast compiling this special collection. Let me know which of the libraries are your favorite!

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Waldron District Library
Waldron, Michigan

Melvin J. Zahnow Library
Saginaw Valley State University, Michigan

Michigan State University Library
East Lansing, Michigan

(Photo by Jeffness)

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North America

1. George Peabody Library*
   Baltimore, Maryland, USA
   (Photos by Sarah Y. Lockwood)
2. Library of Congress*
   Washington, D.C., USA
   
   (Photo by Carol M. Highsmith)
3. New York Public Library (Stephen A. Schwarzman Building)
   New York, New York, USA
   
   (Photo by PFHLai )
   
   (Photo by DAVID ILIFF. License: CC-BY-SA 3.0)
4. Central Library of Vancouver
   Vancouver, Canada
   
   (Photo by Selmo)
   
   (Photo by BradBeattie)
5. Seattle Public Library’s Central Library*
   Seattle, Washington, USA
   
   (Photo by DVD R W)
   (Photo by Moody75)
6. Boston Public Library 
   Boston, Massachusetts, US
   
   (Photo by Skatoulaki)
7. Biblioteca Vasconcelos
   Mexico City, Mexico
   
   (Photo by Gwolf)
8. Beinecke Rare Book Library
   New Haven, Connecticut, USA
   
   (Photo by Gunnar Klack)
   
9. Library of Parliament 
   Ottawa, Canada
   
   (Photo by Tony Webster)
10. Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library
    Toronto, Canada
    
    (Photo by Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library)
11. The Morgan Library 
    New York, New York, USA
    
    (Photo by DAVID ILIFF. License: CC-BY-SA-4.0)
12. Salt Lake City Public Library
    Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
    
    (Photo by Apollomelos)
13. Phillips Exeter Academy Library
    Exeter, New Hampshire, USA
    
    (Photo by Gunnar Klack)
    
14. UNAM Central Library
    Mexico City, Mexico
    
    (Photo by Muñoz LC)
15. University of California San Diego Geisel Library
    San Diego, California, USA
    (Photo by Ben Lunsford)
16. Iowa State Capitol Law Library
    Des Moines, Iowa, USA
    
    (Photo by Dave Parker)
    
17. Los Angeles Public Library
    Los Angeles, California, USA 
    (Photo by Rob Young)
    
    (Photo by Mquach)
18. Cerritos Millennium Library
    Cerritos, California, USA
    
    (Photo by The Hills of Cerritos)
19. Harold Washington Library Center
    Chicago, Illinois, USA
    
    (Photo by Ken Lund)
20. Fisher Fine Arts Library
    Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
    
    (Photo by Matthew Marcucci)
    (Photo by Daderot)
    
21. Kansas City Central Library
    Kansas City, Kansas
    
    (Photo by Charvex)
22. James B. Hunt Jr. Library
    Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
    
    (Photo by Seannator)
23. Joe and Rika Mansueto Library
    Chicago, Illinois, USA
    
    (Photo by Payton Chung)
24. Frederick Ferris Thompson Memorial Library
    Arlington, New York, USA
    
    (Photo by Sabatheus (Jim Mills))
    
    (Photo by Sabatheus (Jim Mills))
25. Palafoxiana Library
    Puebla, Mexico
    
    (Photo by ProtoplasmaKid)
26. Armstrong-Browning Library
    Waco, Texas, USA
    
    (Photo by Michael Barera)
27. Braddock Carnegie Library
    Braddock, Pennsylvania, USA
    
28. Indianapolis Public Library
    Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
    
    (Photo by Serge Melki)
29. Hearst Castle Gothic Study
    San Simeon, California, USA
    
    (Photo by Daderot)
30. Suzzallo Library
    Seattle, Washington, USA
    
    (Photo by Priyaranjan Pattnayak)
31. Providence Athenaeum
    Providence, Rhode Island, USA
    
    (Photo by Kenneth C. Zirkel)
32. Klarchek Information Commons
    Chicago, Illinios, USA
33. Harper Library
    Palatine, Illinois, USA
    
    (Photo by Rick Seidel)
    
34. Halifax Central Library
    Halifax, Canada
    
    (Photo by Citobun)
    
35.  University Of Michigan Law School Library
    Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
    
    (Photo by AndrewHorne)
36. Detroit Public Library
    Detroit, Michigan, USA
    
    (Photo by Mike Boening)
37. Kirby Library
    Easton, Pennsylvania, USA
    
    (Photo by Wegrzynl)
    

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Europe

1. Trinity College Old Library
   Dublin, Ireland
   
   (Photo by David Iliff; License: CC-BY-SA 3.0)
   
   (Photo by Tony Webster)
2. Clementinum*
   Prague, Czech Republic
   
   (Photo by Packare)
3. The Royal Library Copenhagen
   Copenhagen, Denmark
   
   (Photo by Thue)
4. Stuttgart City Library
   Stuttgart, Germany 
   (Photo by Musskiprozz)
5. Library of Birmingham
   Birmingham, United Kingdom
   
   (Photo by Peter Broster)
6. Biblioteca Joanina
7. Coimbra, Portugal
   
   (Photo by PhR6)Bodleian Radcliffe Science Library
   Oxford, United Kingdom
   
   (Photo by DAVID ILIFF. License: CC-BY-SA 3.0)Austrian National Library*
   Vienna, Austria
   
   (Photo by Richard Hopkins)
8. The Admont Library
   Admont, Austria
   
   (Photo by Jorge Royan)
9. Vennesla Library 
   Vennesla, Norway
   
   (Photo by Anne Kjersti Bentsen)
10. Sir Duncan Rice Library
    Aberdeen, United Kingdom
    
    (Photo by Ragazzi00)
    
11. Sainte-Geneviève Library
    Paris, France
    
    (Photo by Marie-Lan Nguyen)
12. Reading Room at the British Museum
    London, United Kingdom
    
    (Photo by DAVID ILIFF. License: CC-BY-SA 3.0)
    
13. Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana
    Apostolic Palace, Vatican City
    
    (Photo by Ghirlandajo)
    
14. Biblioteca Marciana
    Venice, Italy
    
    (Photo by Sherlock)
15. Abbey Library of Saint Gall
    St. Gallen, Switzerland
    
    (Photo by Reinhard Kraasch)
16. National Library of Sweden
    Stockholm, Sweden
    
    (Photo by Øyvind Holmstad)
    
17. Melk Monastery Library*
    Melk, Austria
    
    (Photo by Emgonzalez)
18. Strahov Monastery Library*
    Prague, Czech Republic
    
    (Photo by Y.Shishido)
19. Chateau de Chantilly Library
     Chantilly, France
    
    (Photo by Tango7174)
20. Wiblingen Monastery Library
    Ulm, Germany
    
    (Photo by Enslin)
    
21. Herzog August Library
    Wolfenbuttel, Germany
    
    (Photo by Vincent Eisfeld)
    
22. RijksmuseumLibrary
    Amsterdam, Netherlands
    
    (Photo by Sebastian Koppehel)
    
23. Stockholm Public Library
    Stockholm, Sweden
    
    (Photo by Andrea Serio)
    
24. National Library of Belarus 
    Minsk, Belarus
    
    (Photo by Adam Jones)
25. Peckham Library
    London, United Kingdom
    
    (Photo by Fin Fahey)
26. Brandenburg University of Technology Library
    Cottbus, Germany
    
    (Photo by Teodor Bordeianu)
27. National Library of France
    Paris, France
    
    (Photo by Vincent Desjardins)
28. St. Florian Monastery Library
    Sankt Florian, Austria
    
    (Photo by Zairon)
29. Halmstad City Library
    Halmstad, Sweden
    
    (Photo by Popperipopp)
30. Mafra National Palace Library
    Mafra, Portugal
    
    (Photo by Rosino)
31. Handelingenkamer
    The Hague, Netherlands
    
    (Photo by rijksoverheid, Arenda Oomen)
32. Mediatheque Sandro Penna
    Perugia, Italy
    
    (Photo by Clodcardinali)
33. TU Delft Library
    Delft, Netherlands
    
    (Photo by Sandra Fauconnier)
34. Biblioteca Medicea
    Laurenziana, Florence
    
    (Photo by Angela Stefanoni)
35. Bristol Central Library
    Bristol, United Kingdom
    
    (Photo by Enrique Iniguez Rodriguez)
36. Codrington Library
    Oxford, United Kingdom
    
    (Photo by Godot13)
    
    (Photo by Simon Q)
37. The Library of El Escorial
    San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Spain
    
    (Photo by El fosilmaníaco)
38. Gheorghe Asachi Technical University Library
    Iasi, Romania
39. Mackintosh Library
    Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom
    
40. Library of St. Mang’s Abbey
    Fuessen, Germany
41. Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana
    Rome, Italy
    
    (Photo by Maus-Trauden)
42. The Great Library Of The Reformed Church College Of Sarospatak 
    Sarospatak, Hungary
43. Budapest University Of Technology And Economics Library
    Budapest, Hungary
    
    (Photo by Globetrotter19)
44. Utrecht University Library
    Utrecht, Netherlands
    
    (Photo by Foundert~commonswiki)
45. Waanders In de Broeren
    Zwolle, Netherlands
    
    (Photo by G.Lanting)
46. Biblioteca Malatestiana
    Cesena, Italy
    
    (Photo by Boschetti marco 65)
47. Merton College Library
    Oxford, United Kingdoms
    
    (Photo by Tom Murphy VII)
48. Cardiff Central Library
    Cardiff, United Kingdom
    
    (Photo by Mario Sánchez Prada)
49. Stormen Library
    Bodø, Norway
    
    (Photo by Wald1siedel)
50. Dokk1 Library
    Aarhus, Denmark
    
    (Photo by Doug Kerr)
51. St John’s College Library
    Cambridge, United Kingdom
    
    (Photo by CharlieRCD)
52. National Library Of Finland
    Helsinki, Finland
    
    (Photo by Vestman)
53. National Library Of Latvia 
    Riga, Latvia
    
    (Photo by Glorandal)
54. Croatian National Library 
    Zagreb, Croatia
    
    (Photo by Roberta F.)
55. Archdiocesan Library of Eger
    Eger, Hungary
    
56. New Town Hall Municipal Law Library
    Munich, Germany
    
    (Photo by Martin Falbisoner)
57. Magdalen College Old Library
    Oxford, United Kingdom
    
58. De Krook Library
    Gent, Belgium
    
    (Photo by Paul Hermans)
59. Library and Learning Centre
    Vienna, Austria
    
    ( Photo by P e z i)
60. Graz University Library Reading Room
    Graz, Austria
    
    (Photo by Dr. Marcus Gossler)
61. Library of Sofia University
    Sofia, Bulgaria
    
    (Photo by Anastas Tarpanov)
62. Oberlausitzische Library Of Science
    Gorlitz, Germany
    
    (Photo by © Ralf Roletschek)

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Asia

1. Musashino Art University Museum and Library
   Tokyo, Japan
2. Connemara Public Library
   Chennai, India
   
   (Photo by Dr. Narayanan Hariharan)
3. Beitou Branch of the Taipei Public Library
   Taipei City, Taiwan
   
   (Photo by Wpcpey)
4. Liyuan Library
   Beijing, China
   
5. Kanazawa Umimirai Library
   Kanazawa City, Japan
   
   (Photo by Asturio Cantabrio)
6. National Library of Singapore
   Singapore, Singapore
   
   (Photo by Calvin Teo)
7. Tama Art University Library
   Tokyo, Japan
   
   (Photo by Robertbaum)
8. National Library of Sejong City
   Sejong City, South Korea
   
   (Photo by Minseong Kim)
9. Bishan Community Library
   Singapore, Singapore
   
   (Photo by Someformofhuman)
10. National Library of China
    Beijing, China
    
    (Photo by IQRemix)
11. Rampur Raza Library
    Uttar Pradesh, India
    
    (Photo by Ariannarama)
12. David Sassoon Library 
    Mumbai, India
    
    (Photo by Joe Ravi, CC-BY-SA 3.0)
13. Tianyi Pavilion Library
    Ningbo, China
    
    (Photo by Jenny J.Y.)
14. National Library of Bhutan
    Thimphu, Bhutan
    
    (Photo by Christopher J. Flynn)
15. Grand People’s Study House
    Pyongyang, North Korea
    
    (Photo by Kok Leng Yeo)
16. Nakanoshima Library
    Osaka, Japan
    
    (Photo by Mc681)
17. Sendai Mediatheque 
    Sendai, Japan
    
    (Photo by scarletgreen)
    
18. Tripitaka Koreana Library
    Haeinsa Temple, South Korea
    
    (Photo by Lauren Heckler)

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South America

1. Royal Portuguese Reading Room
   Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
   
   (Photo by Mayumi Ishikawa)
2. National Library of Brazil
   Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
   
   (Photo by Leandro Neumann Ciuffo)
3. Monastery of San Francisco Library
   Lima, Peru
   
   (Photo by BrunoLocatelli)
4. National Library of Chile
   Santiago, Chile
   
   (Photo by Freddy Alexander Bugueño Tolmo)
5. Casa de la Literatura Peruana
   Lima, Peru
   
   (Photo by Manuel Menal)
6. National Library of Costa Rica
   San Jose, Costa Rica
   
   (Photo by Gerd Wiechmann)
7. Biblioteca Virgilio Barco
   Bogotá, Colombia
   
   (Photo by Matt Lemmon)
8. Biblioteca de España
   Medellín, Colombia
   
   (Photo by SajoR)
9. Biblioteca EPM
   Medellín, Colombia
   
   (Photo by Jorge Gomez)
10. Villanueva Public Library
    Villanueva, Colombia

Africa

1. Bibliotheca Alexandrina
   Alexandria, Egypt
   
   (Photo by Moushira)
   
   (Photo by MrSnooks) 
2. Saint Catherine’s Monastery Library
   Sinai, Egypt
   
   (Photo by Berthold Werner)
3. Misr University for Science and Technology Library: See Photos Here
   Giza Governorate, Egypt
   
4. October 6 University Library: See Photos Here
   Giza Governorate, Egypt
5. National Library of South Africa
   Pretoria, South Africa
   
   (Photo by NegativeC)
6. CL Marais Library
   Stellenbosch, South Africa
   
   (Photo by HelenOnline)
7. Port Elizabeth Main Library
   Port Elizabeth, South Africa
   
   (Photo by radami)
   
8. Kenyatta University Library
   Nairobe, Kenya
   
   (Photo by Thorkild Tylleskar)
9. Balme Library
   Accra, Ghana
   
   (Photo by Rjruiziii)
10. Keren Public Library  
    Keren, Eritrea
    
    (Photo by Book Aid International)

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Oceania

1. Mortlock Wing State Library
   Adelaide, Australia
   
   (Photo by Jonwestra)
2. Macquarie University Library
   Sydney, Australia
   
   (Photo by Mw12310)
3. State Library of Victoria 
   Melbourne, Australia
   
   (Photo by DAVID ILIFF. License: CC-BY-SA 3.0)
4. Edith Cowan University Joondalup Library 
   Joondalup, Australia
   
   (Photo by Michael  Coghlan)
5. State Library of New South Wales
   Sydney, Australia
   
   (Photo by Wpcpey)
6. Barr Smith Library
   Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
   
   (Photo by Pdfpdf)
7. University of Otago Central Library
   Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand
   
   (Photo by Allison Brown)
8. George Forbes Memorial Library
   Lincoln, New Zealand
   
   (Photo by der Benni)
9. Tuggeranong Library
   Greenway, ACT, Australia
   
   (Photo by longreach)

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Resources:

• http://www.travelandleisure.com/slideshows/most-beautiful-libraries-in-the-world#20
• http://mentalfloss.com/article/51788/62-worlds-most-beautiful-libraries
• https://www.bestvalueschools.com/50-most-beautiful-libraries-in-the-world/
• https://www.bestvalueschools.com/50-most-beautiful-libraries-in-the-world/
• https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/libraries-most-beautiful-world-bibliotheca-alexandrina-national-library-of-austria-bodleian-trinity-a7992821.html
• http://www.businessinsider.com/most-beautiful-libraries-in-the-world-2016-5
• https://www.shortlist.com/entertainment/books/the-most-beautiful-libraries-in-the-world/96919
• https://www.thrillist.com/culture/world-s-most-beautiful-libraries
• https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/coolest-libraries-world/index.html
• https://www.cnn.com/style/article/most-beautiful-libraries-in-the-world/index.html
• https://www.cntraveler.com/galleries/2014-09-02/10-of-the-worlds-most-beautiful-libraries
• https://www.bustle.com/p/15-of-the-most-beautiful-libraries-in-the-world-42358
• https://www.wired.com/2016/09/settle-10-beautiful-libraries-earth/
• https://www.bookstr.com/5-most-beautiful-libraries-around-world
• https://www.boredpanda.com/extraordinary-libraries/
• http://flavorwire.com/280318/the-25-most-beautiful-public-libraries-in-the-world/25
• http://forreadingaddicts.co.uk/reading/worlds-most-beautiful-libraries
• http://twistedsifter.com/2011/10/beautiful-libraries-around-the-world/
• http://mentalfloss.com/article/538084/reason-you-see-same-leaves-atop-so-many-columns
• http://www.youthvillage.co.za/2015/04/top-10-best-looking-libraries-in-africa/