agirlwithlatte
“I ransack public libraries and find them full of sunk treasure” – Virginia Woolf
“I don’t have to look far to find treasures. I discover them every time I visit a library” – Micheal Embry
In this era full of digitization and technology, where majority of us are engrossed in our busy lifestyles, spending most of our time on various social media platforms, interacting and socializing, it is reassuring to know that many of us are still flocking to the libraries to enjoy digging and learning about culture, history, literature or just looking for some good fiction books to help us flowing and knitting our dreams and imagination. However, it seems that even when we are visiting these spectacular libraries, we can’t help but post a picture on Instagram to save a memory. (Let’s be honest, we all love posting and flaunting on our feeds!!)
A research conducted by Wordery after analyzing the hashtags from libraries all over the world to create an interactive map on Instagram highlights the top twenty-five most beautiful libraries around the world. From the USA to the Czech Republic to Japan, this collection of stunning libraries and beautiful infrastructure could even convince you to hop on a plane to go and read in these amazing libraries.
This list ranges from The St. Peter’s Abbey Library in Austria, founded in 696 by Saint Rupert, to all the way to 2011 when The Stuttgart Public Library was opened in Germany. Whether it’s about awe-inspiring painted ceilings and stacks of historical books, or modern geometric architecture, stunning infrastructure and bold lighting that takes your fancy, there’s a library for everyone.
Seattle Public Library (Central Branch) reserves its spot at the top position as the most popular and the most beautiful library according to Instagram with hashtag #seattlepubliclibrary used 17,658 times, followed by Bodleian Library, University of Oxford, with the hashtag used 16,068 times.
While The United States of America has the highest number of the most beautiful libraries in the world with five American libraries appearing in the list of top 25 libraries, here is a list of top 10 most beautiful libraries in the world according to their popularity and hashtags used on Instagram.
| Position | Library name | City | Country | Hashtag | Number of uses |
| 1 | Seattle Public Library | Seattle | USA | #seattlepubliclibrary | 17,685 |
| 2 | Bodleian Library | Oxford | UK | #bodleianlibrary | 16,068 |
| 3 | Vancouver Public Library | Vancouver | Canada | #vancouverpubliclibrary | 7,907 |
| 4 | Real Gabinete Português de Leitura | Rio de Janeiro | Brazil | #realgabineteportuguesdeleitura | 4,026 |
| 5 | The Public Library | Stuttgart | Germany | #stadtbibliothekstuttgart | 3,992 |
| 6 | The Morgan Library & Museum | New York City | USA | #themorganlibrary | 3,326 |
| 7 | Bibliotheca Alexandrina | Alexandria | Egypt | #bibliothecaalexandrina | 2,543 |
| 8 | Stockholm Public Library | Stockholm | Sweden | #stockholmpubliclibrary | 1,794 |
| 9 | George Peabody Library | Baltimore | USA | #georgepeadbodylibrary | 1,571 |
| 10 | Richard J. Riordan Central Library | Los Angeles | USA | #losangeleslibrary | 1,103 |
Coming top of the table of the most instagrammable libraries is Seattle Public Library situated in Seattle, USA. Due to its notable architecture, this distinctive diamond-shaped avant-garde building, established in 1890 is unlike any other building in Seattle. It was opened in 2004 although the original public library in Seattle was established as an official city department back in 1890. The eleven story building has the capacity for more than 2.30 million books and materials, enough to keep even the most avid reader busy. It gives you 24/7 free access to books, music, movies, TV shows, classes and more!
Coming on 2nd position is The Bodleian Library, Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the main research library of the University of Oxford with over 12 million items in its catalog. It is the second largest library in Britain after The British Library. First opened to scholars in 1602, the Bodleian is steeped in history along with the rest of the red brick university buildings.
The year 1602 feels relatively modern when taking into consideration the foundation dates of some of these wondrous libraries. The oldest on the list by far is the library that lives within St. Peter’s Abbey – founded in 696. As the oldest library in Austria, it is only accessible today with special permission and owns some 170,000 books and other media. Books printed after 1900 can be borrowed while older volumes can only be used in the Reading Room inside the premises.
If you’re a real bookworm and want to take a pilgrimage of these beautiful places, head straight to America where you can find five of the 25 most beautiful libraries in the world according to Instagram with a combined hashtag usage of 24,578 times! Wow!! These libraries can be found in Seattle, New York, Baltimore, Los Angeles, and Rhode Island.
Curling up with a good book and a cup of hot cocoa is one of life’s simplest pleasures. Whether you’re ordering a book online or visiting a library for the afternoon, there is nothing better than sitting down and getting lost in a good narrative. There’s something exciting about visiting a library and soaking up the history, sights and even smells of centuries worth of literature. It is astounding to think of the number of books that belong to these stunning libraries across the world and the famous names in history that may have enjoyed them through the years as we do now.
So why not do this and visit one of the world’s most beautiful libraries the next time? Tell us what you think of the relevance of books and libraries in our modern life and where you are planning to visit next? Let us know via tweet at @fuzzable.
