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
Marginalia Gallery| Exhibition of paintings by Sophia Papathanasi| “Feeling” | 07 February-01 March 2025
Marginalia Gallery presents the exhibition of paintings by the Greek artist Sofia Papathanasi entitled ¨Aeorisis¨ from 7/2/25 - 1/3/25. The artist says ¨Continuing to explore the everyday life of modern man in the urban and natural landscape, I rediscover their contrasts, which seem to coexist and penetrate each other: Heavy matter with lightness, grey stone with colour, the strict geometry of buildings with diffused light. The man of this world straddles the line between the artificial and the natural, the material and the immaterial, the physical and the psychic, seeking meaning, solutions, balance. The works, nowadays, ...More
Dynamic Preparation for VCE by the Greek Community of Melbourne Schools
The two-day summer seminar for VCE preparation in Greek, organized by the Greek Community of Melbourne Schools on January 22 and 23 at the Greek Centre, was a resounding success. The seminar aimed to support students taking Greek at the VCE level, equipping them with valuable skills to excel in their examinations. It provided specialized information and preparation to help participants become familiar with course requirements and build their confidence. During the seminar, students focused on the structure and content of the exams and engaged in practical activities designed to enhance their oral and written communication ...More
Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki| “In the Footsteps of Apostle Paul” | from 29 January 2025
Can a dream change the world? Motivated by an appeal for help with a dream, the Apostle Paul began his second tour, which was to influence world history by marking the beginning of the end of the ancient world. The exhibition "In the Footsteps of Apostle Paul", presented by the Ministry of Culture, the Directorate of Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities and the Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki, traces its course from Macedonia to Corinth. The exhibition was designed by the Directorate of Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities of the Ministry of Culture and implemented in the framework of ...More
I.Sideris Publications| Yannis Valinakis, For a new strategy towards Turkey: How to cancel the “blue country”
Title:For a new strategy towards Turkey: How to cancel the "blue country" Author: Yannis Valinakis Publisher: Ι.Sideris Subject: History\ Diplomacy Year: 2024 Pages: 520 Technical Features: 18Χ24 Hellenism is confronted with an extremely aggressive Turkey that is actively and obsessively claiming Greek islands - and not only maritime "Blue Lands". Therefore, it is in immediate need of a new, ambitious, assertive and effective strategy that breaks through the false dilemma of "dialogue or war". It is precisely this different strategy that this book attempts to put forward for public debate. The exponential expansion of Turkish border ...More
Leave A Comment