Abbey library of Saint Gallen, A Sanctuary of Medieval Knowledge and Baroque Beauty
Klosterhof 6D, 9004 St Gallen, Switzerland
4.6
Introduction
St. Gallen is a charming, car-free old town located in the eastern Swiss region between Lake Boden and Appenzell. Its name and establishment are deeply rooted in an Irish missionary named Gallus, who built a monastery around 612 AD. Since 747 AD, the St. Gallen Monastery has been following the Rule of St. Benedict, requiring believers to study books and establishing a library. This gradually made the small town an important cultural and educational center in Europe, gaining international recognition and beginning to flourish. Today, the most famous buildings are the grand Baroque-style cathedral and monastery library, which has a collection of approximately 140,000 books, some of which are millennium-old manuscripts. The magnificent hall of the monastery library may be the most Rococo-style building in all of Switzerland. In 1983, the entire monastery was listed as a World Heritage Site. The inscription on the main gate of the library, in Greek language, "Pharmacy of the Soul," aptly describes the value of the library. The Baroque-style library hall is filled with a devout atmosphere, leaving a deep impression on visitors. The most valuable part of the monastery library is the hundreds of well-preserved parchment manuscripts, some of which are millennium-old. The magnificent hall of the monastery library may be the most Rococo-style building in all of Switzerland. Address Klosterhof 6D, 9004 St Gallen, Switzerland
Opening hours Monday to Sunday, 10:00-17:00 available. Closed on 12/24 and 12/25. Open from 9:00 on Monday to Friday, reservations can be made in advance.
Transportation Maps of the old town can be obtained from the information center located near the St. Gallen train station, and it is easy to follow the markings on the map to navigate.
The ancient books are well preserved in the library
