Robarts Library
Encyclopedia : R : RO : ROB : Robarts Library
Robarts Library is the main humanities and social sciences library of the University of Toronto. It is currently the largest book repository in the world (although this may change in the near future as the University of Chicago is considering expanding its own Regenstein Library). Robarts Library is the heart of the University of Toronto library system, which is the third largest library system in North America, after that of Harvard and Yale. The library is named after former Ontario Premier John Robarts. It occupies an entire block at the northwest corner of St. George Street and Harbord Street. With 14.8 million volumes and a massive collection of periodicals and journals, Robarts Library is the largest humanities and social science library in Canada.
The library's main building is a large brutalist/futurist concrete structure designed to look like a giant peacock when viewed from the south (see top picture) with the small tower in front designed to be the peacock's neck and beak, while the library stacks in the background are meant to be its extended tail. Some consider it a great architectural achievement, and others consider it hideous.
Its design was conceived in the 1960s by Toronto architects Mathers and Haldenby, in collaboration with the New York architecture firm Warner Burns Toan & Lunde, who specialized in precast concrete buildings. Construction of the 14-storey library was completed in 1973.
The library was initially designed for graduate students only, but following massive student protests, undergraduate students were also granted access. The library's initial design was for the shelving system to revolve, to allow for faster collection by library staff, who would then send books downstairs for pickup. After Robarts was opened to all students, the rotating system was mothballed, although the tracks used by the revolving shelving system are still visible.
Robarts Library is home to the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, which contains a priceless collection of manuscripts and first editions.
It is also the home of Cheng Yu Tung East Asian Library, which holds a collections of over 380,000 volumes of materials in Chinese, Japanese and Korean, and of the Old English Dictionary Project.
In addition to a rich collection of texts, "Robarts," as University of Toronto students commonly refer to it, contains several other useful services for University of Toronto students. 24-hour quiet reading rooms are open when the university is in session. As well, the Scotiabank Information Commons, a large bank of computers connected to the internet on the first floor, allow all University of Toronto students access to computers, printers, scanners, and audiovisual equipment.
Geographical location
The library is located at . It is possible to identify it in aerial photos looking for a large equilateral triangle.Nicknames
Robarts Library has many nicknames including Fort Barts, Fort Book, Jail, the Bunker, Robots, and the Turkey. All of these nicknames refer to the stoic, blockish appearance of the shape (especially the Turkey, as the building looks more like a turkey than a peacock at first glance).In television
The library was featured in an episode of the popular television series Friends. Robarts Library is shown briefly during a scene transition and is implied to be the outdoor view of an unknown New York hospital where actress Jennifer Aniston's character Rachel visits her father, who has just suffered a heart attack.The library was also shown in an episode of Sliders, called "El Sid." It is shown briefly as a still visual after a commercial break, in an episode where the story takes place in an alternate San Francisco that has become a giant prison.
External links
- [Robarts Library at the University of Toronto]
- [Satellite image of Robarts Library from Google Local]
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.