Helsinki University Library
On 4 September 1827 a great fire devastated the city of Turku.
The library collected by the Royal Academy since its establishment
in 1640, containing some 40,000 volumes, was also destroyed
in the fire. Only about 800 books which were on loan at the
time survived the catastrophe. These form the Aboica collection,
which is still used by researchers.
After the fire the university was moved from Turku to Helsinki
in 1828 by order of Tsar Nicholas I. To begin with the university
operated in temporary facilities, including the present-day
Government Palace. The university's main building was designed
by Carl Ludvig Engel and was completed in 1832. Engel also
designed the Helsinki University Library, which opened in
1845.
 The
Helsinki University Library is one of the best-known examples
of early 19th century neoclassicism in Finland. Special emphasis
was placed on fire safety. Engel prepared three proposals
for the building and the tsar choose the most monumental of
these. Engel distinctively combined classical motifs and references
to antiquity in the building's exterior and interior. The
symmetry of the library's rooms and the general layout can
be traced back to the Baths of Diocletian in Rome. The external
and internal architecture is based on the Corinthian column
system. Ancient temple architecture was adapted in the exterior,
and the columns and beams are proportioned exactly like those
in the university's main building across the street.
 The
Helsinki University Library is part of the Senate Square complex,
which includes the Cathedral and the Senate as well as the
university buildings. The architecture in the Senate Square
also had a political message, since it emphasized the connection
between 19th century Finland and the Russian capital of St.
Petersburg.
The Rotunda was designed by Gustaf Nyström and was completed
in 1906-07. It includes six floors above ground. The Rotunda
is a semicircular book tower which holds about 200,000 volumes.
It was designed with fire safety in mind, using a steel framework
and reinforced concrete. The Rotunda forms a harmonious extension
to the main building.
http://www.lib.helsinki.fi/
Photographs:
- Reading room at the University Library in 2000.
Photographer: Matti Tirri
- Southern reading room at the University Library in 1978.
Photographer: Erkki Salmela, Helsinki City Museum's photo
archives.
- Helsinki University Library in spring 2002.
Photographer: Mika Lappalainen, Helsinki City Information
Office.
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