This is the main reference library for central Switzerland and serves the University of Zurich. It consists of a front older part, – die Kantonsbibliothek – built in 1835 and a modern rear extension constructed in 1996. The rear extension occupies three times the area of the older part and goes down five levels deeper underground. The library extends also into a large adjacent and contiguous church, where the music collection is housed. The large chapter house serves as a venue for concerts and lectures and other cultural events.
The main entrance on Zähringerplatz is reached up imposing steps (see above left) to the front portico of the old building. This older front part, whose 19th century facade is shown, houses many of the special collections conserved in this central library. These include old manuscripts from the middle ages as well as 30 000 examples of more modern material. The manuscripts derive from many cultures, from ancient Hebrew and Chinese up to modern European. There are also collections of old prints and photographs and an extensive collection of old maps and other historical material. Most of the material conserved in this library came from scattered collections in other parts of Zurich and of Switzerland. Some were municipal collections and others private collections given to the Central Library as bequests. There appears to be a policy of giving users as much direct access as possible to most of the material, while ensuring the preservation of precious artifacts.
Passing through this older part, one reaches the main Reception at the junction with the larger newer extension, which is constructed in two mirror image halves separated by the central atrium. 
This atrium extends upwards to the top of the building – a further three double height storeys higher – and backwards along half its length. It contains the stair and lift access to all levels, including the five underground floors. (See image at right)
The Ground Floor continues into the main catalogue area (Katalogsaal) on each side of and behind the atrium on Level-0. While there are seats and tables under the large windows around the sides at this level, most of the floor area – except for an area about 120 sq, metres on each side of the stairs access – is occupied by rolling catalogue shelves, to be consulted by users wishing to find specific items. It is noteworthy that the rolling shelves are manually and not electrically operated. (See photo at bottom of this article) The Norwich Millennium Library tried both and has decided to standardise on the manual rolling shelves.
A mezzanine floor under the Reception Area houses a cafeteria and relaxation area as well as facilities for temporary storage of students’ effects – rucksacks etc. The bottom three of the underground floors – each called a ‘Geschlossenes Magazin’ (closed repository) is a large storage area for reference material to which access is restricted. The two underground floors above these have public access.
On the mezzanine floor above these and level with the cafeteria is a large Auditorium together with an extensive teaching area. I did not have an opportunity to inspect these. The two 120 sq. m areas on Level-0 on either side of the stair access have about 10 large tables each. On these are PC terminals giving on-line access to all of the material described in the catalogues as well as other material further afield.
Level-1, reached by atrial stairs or lifts, contains two very large work areas, each with about 150 workstations on large flat tables. In the centres of these tables are ‘pods’ providing power and broadband internet connections for plugging in one’s laptop. Students are allowed to bring all of their work material here for study. There are also more segregated and quieter work areas, similarly equipped, towards the back of this level. Shelves with books and other printed material are arranged end-on along the side walls without restricting the large window areas. Level-2 is similar to Level-1, but there is less window space and more shelves. No laptops are allowed at this level. There are no computer terminals here either, though at one end are microfiche terminals. The atmosphere here is even more studious than below. Level-3 is said to house copies of various newspapers, periodical and journals in a dynamic collection that spans most of the current scientific publications – European, American and others. Unfortunately, I did not have an opportunity to see these.
Architecturally, this is a very impressive building, though I suspect not now at the cutting edge. The chief librarian told me that they had some problems with heat from the large glass area of the roof of the atrium during the hot weather, but that the building was generally a great pleasure to be in. They have certainly made very good use of natural daylight and the artificial light used to supplement it appears to be very well colour matched. I did not see any radiators, ventilation ducts or air conditioning, so cannot say whether this is a self regulating building. The very large atrium/stairwell works very well, partly because it is so big and open and the stairs are gentle. It takes up rather a great deal of space – an expensive commodity. I would say that these stairs could with benefit be replaced by modern stepless escalators, a much better arrangement for the elderly or disabled.
Altogether, this was a very interesting visit, but a university reference library is not exactly what we need in Hereford. Nevertheless, a few useful lessons may still be learned from its layout .
Hubert Porte July 2007
Manual rolling shelving – much preferable to electrically operated systems for safety and reliability reasons.
Photos taken by Hubert Porte
