Wood Bookstacks

The beautiful wood bookstacks that ring the Library of Parliament Reading Room have always been difficult to illuminate. Certain areas can become quite dim on dull days and at night, and book titles become hard to read. This situation was not improved after the fire of 1952 when the glass gallery floors, which had helped distribute the light to lower stacks, were removed. Also after the fire, glass end panels and glass light globes were removed from the stacks.

Lighting in wood bookstacks, before. July 29, 1999	Wood bookstacks, second gallery, before. March 7, 2002

These features, along with the glass gallery floors, have been restored through the Library renewal project—reviving the sparkle of the Reading Room as it was originally and brightening the space by distributing light in a way that is both functionally practical and aesthetically pleasing.

Glass gallery floor, during. December 19, 2005

The original pine bookstacks have been cleaned thoroughly and, where required, repaired and refurbished by expert carpenters and woodworkers.