Description of the attraction
From the 7th to the 18th century, St. Gallen was itself considered an abbey. The founder is considered a monk named Gall, originally from Ireland. In 719, it was decided to start the construction of the monastery itself.
The Abbey Library of St. Gallen is considered one of the oldest libraries in Europe. It is listed as a World Heritage Site for its unique interior and an incredible collection of rare books and manuscripts from the Middle Ages.
At the entrance you can immediately see the inscription in Greek: "Pharmacy of the soul". Visitors are immediately asked to change their shoes or wear special slippers so as not to damage the inlaid wooden floor. After that, you can enter the hall.
The abbey library is located in a separate building next to the cathedral. This building is made in a pompous Baroque style, designed by Peter Tambom. The rooms, which contain countless book shelves, are in the Rococo style. The ceiling of the largest of them is decorated with frescoes depicting theologians at four ecumenical councils.
In addition to the usual halls lined with shelving, from floor to ceiling, there are special storage facilities, which contain many rare documents and manuscripts, which are almost never on display. Photography is prohibited here.
The list of cultural treasures in this library is truly amazing - it contains a considerable number of Irish manuscripts, more than a dozen manuscripts dating back to the seventh to eighth centuries, including the Latin manuscript of the 750 Gospel. There are also specimens dating back to the BC era.
