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
Screenings in the garden of ELIVIP | From the book to the screen | July 3 and 4, 2025
ELIVIP and Athens Open Air Film Festival, in their first collaboration, present in the garden of ELIVIP, in Paleo Psychiko, two films based on books. They are The Hours and Howards End. The films are introduced by Thanasis Hatzopoulos, poet and psychoanalyst, and Katerina Schina, translator and literary critic. Thursday 03 July| The Hours Director: Stephen Daldry Cast: Nicole Kidman, Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore, Ed Harris Duration: 111' Year: 2002 An introduction by Thanasis Hatzopoulos, poet and psychoanalyst Virginia Woolf (1882-1941) and her famous novel Mrs. Dalloway—which marked its 100th anniversary since first publication this year—are at ...More
Greek Community of Melbourne| Greek History and Culture Seminars| Gender in Modern Greek| 03 July 2025
The aim of the seminar is to examine the role of Greek gendered terms in sustaining social gender ideologies that reinforce sexism. In the first part of the seminar, we explore the relationship between grammatical and lexical gender, and the construction of social gender. We focus on the generic use of the masculine and the semantic derogation of women, and we expose the biased representation of women and men in Greek language use. In the second part of the seminar, we discuss the different language reform strategies (e.g. gender-specification and gender-neutralization) that Greek speakers can use ...More
Asclepian Events 2025 – “The Myth of Asclepius” | July 12, 2025
For the third consecutive year, the sacred site of the Asclepieion in Ancient Corinth comes alive once again, hosting a unique cultural experience where Myth, Philosophy, and Art meet through the lens of the Greek tradition of self-healing. The Cultural Association "Academy of Asclepian Self-Healing," the theater group "ARSINOE," and the Society of Literature and Art "Alkyonides" present the "Asclepian Events," theatrical cultural anthropology of an ancient-knowledge character. This is an initiative dedicated to the "Clarity of Mind, Psychosomatic Well-being, Strengthening, and Promotion of Health" of the modern human and is held under the auspices of ...More
Thirathen Museum| Group “Angkinares”| 26 June 2025
The musical group "Aginares" consists of Haris Panagiotakis, Giorgos Psarakis, and Haris Bakas, and was formed in 2018 in Heraklion, Crete. This musical collaboration bears fruit through their first album "Spring of Weather," bringing original compositions and arrangements with the sound colors of Crete, from the "Protomastores" (Master Musicians) to the present day. The album blossoms in the musical garden of Crete, with the hope that it will bring spring to souls and the eternal victory of the "Adiktamos" (indomitable) love. On Thursday, 26/06/2025, at 21:00, in the courtyard of the Thirathen Museum. ...More
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