National Library of Belarus

The National Library of Belarus in Minsk is the biggest library in the country. Its glass building is 73.6 meters tall, has 23 floors and is shaped like a rhombicuboctahedron, a solid with 26 faces, which is a bit like a giant diamond.

Construction began in November 2002 and the library opened on 16 June 2006. It can seat about 2,000 readers, has a 500-seat conference hall, and its collection of around 10 million items is the largest collection of Belarusian printed works. An elevator at the back takes visitors up to a roof observation deck with binoculars and views across Minsk.

A building shaped like a diamond

The architects were Michaił Vinahradaŭ and Viktar Kramarenka. The rhombicuboctahedron shape is made from squares and triangles, and the outer walls are covered in rhomb-shaped glass panels. At night the panels are lit, so the building glows over Minsk.

The building weighs about 115,000 tonnes, not counting the books. Construction ran from November 2002 to January 2006, and the library opened on 16 June 2006.

A library with a view

A lift at the back of the building goes up to the roof, on the 23rd floor, where a viewing platform has binoculars set around its edge for looking over the city. There is also a café and a gallery on the 22nd floor.

The library also holds the third largest collection of books in Russian, after those of Moscow and Saint Petersburg.

On the globe

The model shows the glass diamond-shaped building with lit rhomb panels.