In a wall inscription written in Dutch, a clear message is conveyed to us within the confines of a library:
“You have two eyes and only one mouth. This is a warning – read more, speak less.”
This is no ordinary library. The Rijksmuseum Research Library is a work of archival art. Nestled in a four-story architectural wonder, the museum’s library may not be a familiar sight at first glance. Stepping out of the second-floor entrance and into the museum, one is greeted by a life-sized masterpiece by Rembrandt depicting the figures from “The Night Watch.” Boldly dressed guards with large beards are dramatically showcased. This is Amsterdam.
The time is 10 o’clock in the morning. Although the doors to the Rijksmuseum Research Library are open, visitors are not free to wander as they please. It functions as an office, equipped with all the features one would expect. Initially serving as a catalog archive of the museum, the library was conceptualized by the renowned Dutch architect, Pierre Cuypers, in 1885. Following renovations, it was finally opened to the public in 2004. Visitors can now marvel at his labor of love.
Light streaming in from the grand arched ceiling illuminates the hall. Skylights above the main reading room were a modern innovation for the time. This meant visitors did not need candles or gas lamps to read. Cuypers aimed to create a grand space that appeared larger than it actually was (in the Gothic tradition). This is why the exquisite columns taper at the top and bottom, making them appear taller. The entire hall seems to elevate itself.
Witnessing this spectacle, one can’t help but be enticed to read. Upstairs, adjacent to the main reading room on the second level, there is a small room with tables and chairs. Inside, you can find “The Latest News of June 11, 1633”, an early Dutch newspaper and other ephemeral publications donated to the library. Also on display are “Color Theories Through the Eyes of Artist Bookmakers” and “A Monument on Paper for Bouchardon’s Equestrian Statue of Louis XV”, a description of the design by Pierre Jean Mariette. The span of time is dizzying.
What better way to spend a rainy Saturday than delving into a good book?
Approximately 400,000 volumes of specialized materials lie within the library. Books and journals adorn the high shelves and three balconies on the main floor. In 1885, they had only 3,500 items, but now there are around 70,000 – and that’s just a fraction of the treasures hidden beneath the building in unseen tunnels. The archive remains the largest historical art library in the Netherlands, both then and now, and the oldest at that.
From the vantage point of the second balcony, Cuypers’s archival dream is fully on display.
Our gazes slide along the wrought iron balustrade, an innovation of the 19th century, layering us from the floor to the sky. The upper sections of the walls are painted light to reflect as much sunlight as possible into our space. Decorations are small and sparse to maintain an airy and light feeling. Modern forms and functions are exposed, with visible iron rivets. The 19th-century style is accentuated with gold-colored artificial rivets, completing the decorative rhythm. Signs with the names of major publishers adorn the columns.
As a fan of Gothic style, Cuypers clearly had a keen eye for symmetry. The spiral staircase at the corner winds upward continually. A corner across the hall, without a staircase, is surrounded by circular mosaic patterns on the floor.
This Saturday morning seems delightfully unusual. The damp rain and gloomy weather outside have done little to dim the relaxed atmosphere within the Rijksmuseum Research Library.