National Library

The National Library of France, also known as BNF, is the most important library in the country, with four equidistant buildings of glass and chrome designed to resemble open books (called Towers of Times, Letters, Numbers and Laws).

In order not to confuse it with the equally important Richelieu-Louvois Library (whose beautiful reading room is worth a visit), we will call this the François-Mitterrand Library .

This library, located in the Quartier de la Gare, next to the Seine, was opened to the public in 1998 and the collection housed here consists of more than 30 million volumes, as well as a modern digital library.

Plays

Among these works are rare copies, from foreign libraries and confiscations from the time of the Revolution, with documents from abbeys, colleges and universities; maps, manuscripts, newspapers and photographs, dedicated to all fields of culture.

In addition to the reading rooms, there are two more for exhibitions and two auditoriums for holding conferences or concerts; In the west vestibule are the Coronelli Globes, two huge globes representing the earth and the sky, a gift from a Venetian monk to King Louis XIV.

Undoubtedly a place of reference for the French-speaking world, and an interesting place to discover in Paris along with other interesting things to see .

National Library Nearby Places

Museum of Natural History

Prices

Free

Schedules

Mondays from 2:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. for researchers, Tuesday to Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. and Sundays from 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Address

Quai Francois Mauriac 11

How to get

Metro lines 6 and 14, Bibliothèque François Mitterrand, Quai de la Gare and Chevaleret stations / RER: line C, Bibliothèque François Mitterrand station.