Library of Trinity College Dublin

The Library of Trinity College Dublin serves Trinity College. It is a legal deposit or "copyright library", under which, publishers in Ireland must deposit a copy of all their publications there, without charge. It is the only Irish library to hold such rights for works published in the United Kingdom. The Library is the permanent home to the Brian Boru harp which is a national symbol of Ireland, a copy of the 1916 Proclamation of the Irish Republic, and the Book of Kells. One of the four volumes of the Book of Kells is on public display at any given time. The volumes and pages shown are regularly changed; a new display case installed in 2020 facilitated all pages to be displayed including many which had not been seen in public for several decades. Members of the University of Dublin also have access to the libraries of Tallaght University Hospital and the Irish School of Ecumenics, Milltown. Constituent buildings The Library proper occupies several buildings, six of which are at the Trinity College campus itself, with another part of the Trinity Centre at St James's Hospital, Dublin: The oldest library building, now known as the Old Library, is Thomas Burgh's magnum opus. Construction began in 1712. A large building which took twenty years to complete in its original form, it towered over the university and city after its completion in 1732. Even today, surrounded by similarly scaled buildings, it is imposing and dominates the view of the university from Nassau Street. The Book of Kells is located in the Old Library, along with the Book of Durrow, the Garland of Howth and other ancient texts. Also incorporating the Long Room, the Old Library is one of Ireland's biggest tourist attractions and holds thousands of rare, and in many cases very early, volumes. In the 18th century, the college received the Brian Boru harp, one of the three surviving medieval Gaelic harps, and a national symbol of Ireland, which is now housed in the Library. Housed within the Old Library are: Early Printed Books and Special Collections. Manuscripts & Archives. The Berkeley/Lecky/Ussher (BLU) Libraries complex, incorporating: The Berkeley Library, in Fellows' Square. Designed by Paul Koralek of ABK Architects, an imposing Brutalist structure opened in 1967 as the "New Library". The Berkeley name was adopted in 1978. In April 2023, the college decided to "dename" the library due to the fact that Berkeley owned and worked slaves on his property in Rhode Island.