Tucked into an alleyway in the shadows of Sant’Ignazio, the Biblioteca Casanatense welcomes curious visitors into this perfect example of a grand, early 18th century library.

Cardinal Casanate began the public library in 1701 over the stables of a Dominican monastery. The library grew over time from 25,000 to 400,000 volumes, including about 6,000 manuscripts, 2,200 incunabula (books printed between 1451 and 1500), banned books from the Inquisition, and even some of Albrecht Durer’s woodcuts.

The gaping main hall is lined with cracked, leather bound Latin texts stretching from floor to ceiling. The room, about as long as a football field, is floored in polished marble, walled with dramatic dark wood shelving and flanked by four, 10-foot tall globes that were handmade in 1760.

While it’s easy to imagine yourself as an 18th century intellectual here, actually reading the Latin texts….not quite as easy.