National Library of The Philippines - Building

Building

In 1954, President Ramon Magsaysay issued an executive order forming the José Rizal National Centennial Commission, entrusted with the duty of "erecting a grand monument in honor of José Rizal in the capital of the Philippines". The Commission then decided to erect a cultural complex in Rizal Park with a new building housing the National Library as its centerpiece, a memorial to Rizal as an advocate of education. To finance the construction of the new National Library building, the Commission conducted a nationwide public fundraising campaign, the donors being mostly schoolchildren, who were encouraged to donate ten centavos to the effort, and library employees, who each donated a day's salary. Because of this effort by the Commission, the National Library of the Philippines is said to be the only national library in the world built mostly out of private donations, and the only one built out of veneration to its national hero at the time of its construction.

Construction on the building's foundation began on March 23, 1960 and the superstructure on September 16. During construction, objections were raised over the library's location, claiming that the salinity of the air around Manila Bay would hasten the destruction of the rare books and manuscripts that would be stored there. Despite the objections, construction still continued, and the new building was inaugurated on June 19, 1961, Rizal's 100th birthday, by President Carlos P. Garcia, Magsaysay's successor.

The current National Library building, a six-storey, 110-foot (34 m) edifice, was designed by Hexagon Associated Architects and constructed at a cost of 5.5 million pesos. With a total floor area of 198,000 square feet (18,400 m2), the library has three reading rooms and three mezzanines which currently occupy the western half of the second, third and fourth floors. Each reading room can accommodate up to 532 readers, or 1,596 in total for the entire building. The 400-seat Epifanio de los Santos Auditorium and a cafeteria are located on the sixth floor. There are also provisions for administrative offices, a fumigation room, an air-conditioned photography laboratory and printing room, two music rooms and an exhibition hall. The library's eight stack rooms have a total combined capacity of one million volumes with ample room for expansion. In addition to two staircases connecting all six floors, the National Library building is equipped with a single elevator, servicing the first four floors.

Part of the National Library building's west wing is occupied by the National Archives.