Library of Trinity College Dublin. The Library of Trinity College Dublin serves Trinity College and the University of Dublin. It is a legal deposit or copyright library, under which, publishers in Ireland must deposit a copy of all their publications there, without charge. It is the only Irish library to hold such rights for works published in the United Kingdom. The Library is the permanent home to the Brian Boru harp which is a national symbol of Ireland, a copy of 1916 Proclamation of the Irish Republic, and the Book of Kells. One of the four volumes of the Book of Kells is on public display at any given time. The volumes and pages shown are regularly changed; a new display case installed in 2020 will allow all pages to be displayed including many not seen in public for several decades. Members of the University of Dublin also have access to the libraries of Tallaght University Hospital and the Irish School of Ecumenics, Milltown. The Library proper occupies several buildings, six of which are at the Trinity College campus itself, with another part of the Trinity Centre at St James's Hospital, Dublin: The oldest library building, now known as the Old Library, is Thomas Burgh's magnum opus. Construction began in 1712. A large building which took twenty years to complete in its original form, it towered over the university and city after its completion in 1732. Even today, surrounded by similarly scaled buildings, it is imposing and dominates the view of the university from Nassau Street. The Book of Kells is located in the Old Library, along with the Book of Durrow, the Garland of Howth and other ancient texts. Also incorporating the Long Room, the Old Library is one of Ireland's biggest tourist attractions and holds thousands of rare, and in many cases very early, volumes. In the 18th century, the college received the Brian Boru harp, one of the three surviving medieval Gaelic harps, and a national symbol of Ireland, which is now housed in the Library. Housed within the Old Library are: Early Printed Books and Special Collections. Manuscripts & Archives. The Berkeley/Lecky/Ussher Libraries complex, incorporating: The Berkeley Library, in Fellows' Square. Designed by Paul Koralek of ABK Architects, an imposing Brutalist structure opened in 1967. The Lecky Library, attached to the Arts Building. Also designed by ABK, officially opened in 1978. The Ussher Library, overlooking College Park. Designed by McCullough Mulvin Architects, officially opened in 2003. The Glucksman Map Library. The Preservation and Conservation Department. The Hamilton Science and Engineering Library, located within the Hamilton Building. The 1937 Reading Room. The John Stearne Medical Library, housed at St James's Hospital. Further materials are held in storage in Stacks, either in closed access within College or at a book depository in the Dublin suburb of Santry. The Library began with the founding of Trinity College in 1592. In 1661, Henry Jones presented it with the Book of Kells, its most famous manuscript. James Ussher, Archbishop of Armagh, whose most important works were Veterum Epistolarum Hibernicarum Sylloge and Brittanicarum Ecclesiarum Antiquitates, left his valuable library, comprising several thousand printed books and manuscripts, to the Library. His complete works were published by the Library in twenty-four volumes. In 1801, the Library was given legal deposit rights, making it the only library in Ireland to have such rights for the United Kingdom at that time. According to the Republic of Ireland's Copyright and Related Rights Act, 2000, the Library is entitled, along with the National Library of Ireland and the libraries of the National University of Ireland, the University of Limerick, and Dublin City University, to receive a copy of all works published in the Republic of Ireland. Also, as a result of the British Legal Deposit Libraries Act 2003, which continues a more ancient right dating from 1801, the Library is entitled, along with the Bodleian Library at Oxford, Cambridge University Library, the National Library of Wales and the National Library of Scotland, to receive a copy on request of all works published in the United Kingdom. Many works are now being received electronically rather than in print under new UK regulations which came into force in April 2013. The 65-metre-long main chamber of the Old Library, the Long Room, was built between 1712 and 1732 and houses 200,000 of the Library's oldest books. Initially, The Long Room had a flat ceiling, shelving for books only on the lower level, and an open gallery.
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