Description

Visit State Library Victoria this Open House Melbourne as we celebrate 170 years of the Library opening its doors to the public.

Opened to the public in 1856 and spanning an entire city block, State Library Victoria is Australia’s oldest public library and one of the first free public libraries in the world. Housing a combination of contemporary and historic spaces, the Library is brought together by 23 architecturally-designed buildings.

The Library is known for its collection, which began at 3,846 volumes and, over the past 168 years, has amounted to more than five million items, including books, manuscripts, serials, photographs, artworks, maps, ephemera and more.

The Library is constantly evolving, with an ambitious collection digitisation program, as well as events and exhibitions that reach new audiences every day.

What's On

Explore Australia's oldest public library and the third busiest library in the world. Located in the heart of Melbourne’s CBD and spanning an entire city block, State Library Victoria houses a combination of contemporary and historical spaces, combined with a dynamic calendar of events, bringing Melbourne’s culture and history to life.    

On Saturday and Sunday, experience a taste of State Library Victoria’s premium tours this Open House Melbourne weekend, where you’ll explore the Library’s iconic spaces, descend underneath the Dome and be led into key back-of-house spaces usually off-limits to the public, unlocking treasures dating back to the 1800s.

Dive into the Library’s latest exhibition, Rebel Heart: Love letters and other declarations, a stirring new exhibition that explores romantic love – and its foil, heartbreak – through State Library Victoria’s extraordinary archive of soul-baring letters, intimate diaries and rare manuscripts, amplified in powerful new music commissions. On Friday we will be running two curator tours of Rebel Heart, at 11am and 2pm.