Bavarian State Library

One of Europe's largest and most significant libraries — founded in 1558, housing manuscripts, incunabula and 39 million items within a magnificent Renaissance building on Ludwigstraße.

The Bavarian State Library is one of the most important research libraries in the world and serves as the cultural memory of the Free State of Bavaria. Founded in 1558 by Duke Albrecht V, it now holds around 39 million items, including one of the world's finest manuscript collections — medieval codices, ancient papyri, and early printed books. The monumental neo-Renaissance building on Ludwigstraße, completed in 1843 to designs by Friedrich von Gärtner, is itself a landmark: the entrance hall, lined with marble staircases and statues of Greek scholars, sets the intellectual tone immediately. Today, the library not only serves researchers but also opens its treasures to the general public through rotating exhibitions.