Booking a working place in a research reading room

In case you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.

• Aventinus Reading Room
  lesesaalleihe@bsb-muenchen.de
• Reading Room for Manuscripts and Rare Books
  handschriften@bsb-muenchen.de
• Reading Room Music/ Maps/ Images
  lesesaal.mkb@bsb-muenchen.de
• East European, Oriental and Asian Reading Room
  ostlesesaal@bsb-muenchen.de

► Aventinus Reading Room

► Reading Room for Manuscripts and Rare Books

► Reading Room Music/Maps/Images

► East European, Oriental and Asian Reading Room

Entitled group of persons

For accessing the research reading rooms, prior reservation of a working place is required. The research reading rooms (Aventinus Reading Room, Reading Room for Manuscripts and Rare Books, Reading Room for Music/Maps/Images and East European, Oriental and Asian Reading Room) are primarily intended for researchers whose academic work is in the respective subject areas represented there, in particular for working with literature and media which can be ordered only for provision in the respective research reading room and/or can be used exclusively there.
Please order the desired media in advance in BSB DISCOVER! in each case.

Part of the working places in the research reading rooms can be booked freely, with the exception of the Reading Room for Manuscripts and Rare Books: here, prior registration is always mandatory for obtaining access. For scholarly work, simplified access to the research reading rooms can be granted in the form of a permanent reservation, provided that certain conditions are fulfilled.
Special access possibilities for researchers

Required documents

For making a reservation, you need your BSB ID or your LMU library number and your e-mail address.

Reservations are only permitted with your own personal library number. In case you have registered via the online application for registration, please make sure to collect your library card from the registration office (Anmeldung) prior to your visit to the reading room. Your library card is required at the admission control points to the reading rooms for checking whether you have a valid registration.
Registration on site | Opening hours |
Online application for registration (with place of residence in Germany) |
Registration form for work and study visits (if resident abroad)

Researchers from abroad without registered place of residence in Germany are kindly asked to contact the reading room attending to their research visit.

Reservation confirmation

You will receive a reservation confirmation from us by e-mail.

No Internet/no e-mail address?

In the event that you do not use an Internet access or an e-mail address, you can contact the information service on the ground floor or call the telephone inquiry service (+49 89 28638-2322) to make reservations.

Visit to the reading room

The original of the BSB library card or of the LMU card has to be presented when visiting a reading room. It is checked on the basis of these identification cards whether you have a valid reading-room reservation. Copies (in digital or paper form) are not accepted.

Researchers who have registered for a work and study visit and who do not have a reader pass are required to present an official identification document and documentation of their e-mail correspondence with the reading room in question.

Cancelling a booking

Please cancel your booking in case you cannot make use of a reservation. The working place can then be used by other interested users. This can be done in various ways:

• using the associated link in the confirmation e-mail,
• using the cancel button in the booking calendar,
• or using your list of reservations which can be checked after logging into the reservation website.

Cancelling your booking after your visit still makes sense in cases where the booked time slot has not yet expired and you no longer require the place in the reading room.

The Bayerische Staatsbibliothek is committed to the scholarly use of its extensive and unique book collections. Simplified access to the research reading rooms is provided for correspondingly qualified scholars whose research is based on these book collections. In addition to a valid library card of the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek or a valid LMUcard, users are required to provide credible substantiation of their current scholarly activities. If the conditions are fulfilled, a permanent reservation is granted with a limited period of validity, which can be extended if required.

For inquiries relating to the special access possibilities with respect to the research reading rooms kindly contact the service staff there.
Contact for the research reading rooms