Rising from the soot and industry of Victorian Manchester, the John Rylands Library feels less like a library and more like a cathedral devoted to learning and knowledge. Designed by Basil Champneys and opened in 1900, its vaulted reading room, stained glass and carved stonework remain among the great interiors of England.
In recent years the library has undergone a sensitive £7.6 million regeneration project known as John Rylands Next Chapter - carefully restoring and reimagining galleries, exhibition spaces and visitor facilities while preserving the extraordinary spirit of the building.
It stands now not simply as a monument to the past, but as a living part of booming Manchester’s cultural future.
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