About the background

The building of the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in the Ludwigstrasse was completed 175 years ago and thus inaugurated in 1843 – after a construction period of eleven years. King Ludwig I had commissioned the architect Friedrich von Gärtner with this project already shortly after his accession to power. With a length of 152 metres, a depth of 78 metres and a height of 24 metres, Germany's largest blank brick building was regarded as the best German library building at the time. Up to 1944, also the Allgemeines Reichsarchiv (general Reich archive) was accommodated here.

100 years after its inauguration, 85 percent of the building was destroyed by a number of air raids in the Second World War. The reconstruction spanned several phases and took until 1970.

About the cabinet presentation

Within the framework of a cabinet presentation in the hallway in front of the Reading Room for Music/Maps/Images, the Image Archive presents numerous reproductions of photographs from its collection that illustrate this eventful history of construction.

Also available as virtual exhibition at Google Arts & Culture  (in German)