The cultural treasure of the city
Municipal Library of Patra
Adress: 110 Maizonos Str., Patras
Tel. of Reading Room +30 2610 224813
mail: [email protected]
https://patraslibrary.weebly.com
Municipal Library of Patra
The origins of the Municipal Library of Patras lie in the donation of the library of the “Patra Craft Company” to the Municipality of Patras in 1903.
Δημοτική Βιβλιοθήκη Πατρών – Αναγνωστήριο / Municipal Library of Patras – Reading Room
In 1908, after petitions through the local Press, the Municipal Library of Patras was founded, and the first Supervisory Committee was elected. The Library was housed in the school on the corner of Gounari and Karaiskaki Streets. Two years later, in 1910, the official opening ceremony took place.
The Library closed in 1926, abandoned, and its contents were stored in the basement of the Municipality until 1944, when a group of book lovers transported them to the house of former mayor Ioannis Vlachos and subsequently to the Karamandani Mansion, on 42 Maizonos Street.
Δημοτική Βιβλιοθήκη Πατρών – Αρχιτεκτονικό σχέδιο / Municipal Library of Patra – Floorplan
In 1947 the postwar Municipal Library was inaugurated, with 18,200 books, mostly donated by the public. In 1948, by royal decree, the Library became a legal entity governed by public law. In 1955 the new building was inaugurated, and the books transported there.
Since 2011, the Library is part of a newly founded legal entity governed by public law, under the name “Municipal Library-Cultural Organization of the Municipality of Patras”. It comprises the Central Library (110 Maizonos Street) and the Annex (Eleftheria Square, 26 Fokaias Street). The ground floor houses the Children’s Department and the Municipal Gallery. Visitors can use the reading room, borrow books, access the Internet, use the computers for research purposes, and there are workstations for people with disabilities.
Head of the Library is the librarion Ms. Aikaterini Kourou
Future plans
The Municipal Library of Patras falls under the category of public libraries. Within this framework, its plans include the restoration of the buildings and the upgrading of services and functions, in order to develop into a large central public library that will support the right to self-education and public education, providing access to every resident of the city. Furthermore, it may also become the centre of a network of municipal/public libraries in the neighbouring municipalities and regions.
Δημοτική Βιβλιοθήκη Πατρών – Εκπαιδευτικό πρόγραμμα / Municipal Library of Patra − Educational programme
For the moment, a study for the creation of a modern section for children/teenagers, a department for digital technologies and an exhibition of rare books and documents is underway.
Moreover, funding is being sought for the installation of digital services through the use of radio-frequency identification technology (RFID).
ΕΚΔΟΣΕΙΣ
Patakis Publications | Fragiski Abatzopoulou-E.H. Gonatas: Short and Strange Stories
Title:E.H. Gonatas: Short and Strange Stories Author: Fragkiski Abatzopoulou Publisher: Patakis Subject: Research Year: December 2025 Pages: 352 Τechnical Features: 16Χ21 A book about the author E. Gonatas. An author who has carved his own path in post-war Greek literature. Although he had been writing poetry and prose since 1945, his works remained unknown for decades and were ignored by the academic world. However, since the 1980s, his writing, themes, and work have become known, loved, and imitated. It was precisely those characteristics of his work that sought to "decouple art from ideology" that set Gonatas ...More
Yanis Varoufakis presented his new book to the Greek Community of Melbourne
On Tuesday 3 March, Nikos Papastergiadis welcomed the world-renowned economist and General Secretary of MERA 25, Yani Varoufakis, back to the Greek Centre. This was Varoufakis’s third visit to the Greek Centre. He first appeared in 2012 to discuss the global financial crisis, and returned in 2020 for a special screening and Q&A of Adults in the Room. On this occasion, he returned to launch his new book, Raise Your Soul. Varoufakis became widely known as a commentator on the global economic crisis. He is known for his ability to avoid complex economic terminology and clearly ...More
Yorgos Papafigos at InnerLand Project | March 14, 2026
InnerLand Project presents the experiential workshop Limit to Deviation: Integration and Change with Yorgos Papafigkos, Saturday, March 14, 5:00-7:00 p.m., at Thiseio (21 Ilias Poulopoulos Street, Thiseio, Athens 11851). The workshop is inspired by the sculpture Same Side (2025) and explores the boundary as a living and changing structure through practices of incorporation, transformation, and experimentation on resin fragments. The experience concludes with a collective observation of the works in the space, raising questions about the relationship between boundary and freedom. On the occasion of the workshop, you can also watch the third vidcast of the ...More
The House of Cyprus| Cyprus CHOREOGRAPHY Athens 2026, at the Michael Cacoyannis Foundation
The House of Cyprus, in collaboration with the Michael Cacoyannis Foundation and with the support of the Department of Contemporary Culture of the Deputy Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Cyprus, is organizing "Cyprus Choreography Athens 2026," on Tuesday, March 10, and Tuesday, March 17, 2026, at 8:00 p.m., at the Michael Cacoyannis Foundation, 206 Piraeus Street, Tavros, tel. 210 3418550. This year's event is part of the Cultural Program of the Cyprus Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2026. Five contemporary Cypriot choreographic creations are presented, which were successfully performed in Cyprus ...More
Leave A Comment