Reading Rooms and Services

The Staatsbibliothek's reading rooms and bookable on-site facilities provide designated areas tailored to different study and work preferences. Whether you're looking for a quiet study space for focused research and learning or a collaborative environment for teamwork: make the Staatsbibliothek your own.
Orientation in the Reading Rooms

Silence

Unter den Linden

Manuscripts Reading Room (only in German)

Maps Reading Room

Music Reading Room (only in German)

Rare Books Reading Room

Newspaper Reading Room

Sakya

Potsdamer Straße

Oriental Reading Room

East Asia Reading Room

Eastern Europe Reading Room

Laptop-free zones on the 2nd and 4th floor

Quiet

Unter den Linden

Atlantis

Potsdamer Straße

General Reading Room

Lesesaalzonierung Unter den Linden: Kommunikation

Collaboration

Unter den Linden

Alexandria

Jerusalem

Oxford

Utopia

Potsdamer Straße

Foyer

Unter den Linden, an information board in the foyer provides information about the different workspaces and there are stand-up displays in front of the rooms.

Are you curious about why these names were chosen?

Conditions of use

The Staatsbibliothek's reading rooms hold reference works and information resources on all academic disciplines – with a special focus on humanities, cultural and social sciences.
Items shelved in the reading rooms can only be consulted in the reading rooms, they cannot be borrowed.

The special reading rooms (e.g. Maps Reading Room, East Asia Reading room) hold reference works which, as a result of the type of material or the geographical area, especially refer to the items preserved in the special departments. Any special department's items are consulted in the respective reading room.

Drinks in closed bottles can be taken into the reading rooms, whereas food is constricted to areas outside the reading rooms.

Onsite Facilities

In all locations study desks for wheelchair users and visually impaired people are available. Find out more information here.

Use room Utopia for video calls with your own laptop.

 

At our site Potsdamer Straße you can reach the information staff in the reading room personally from Monday - Saturday from 10am - 6pm.

At our site Unter den Linden you can get help and advice at the Information next to the Issue Desk from Monday - Friday, 10am - 6pm and Saturday, 2pm - 6pm.

Unter den Linden on the 1st floor in room Jerusalem are three group study rooms for 6 persons and one for 10 persons.
You can book a group study room online. For further information on booking conditions, refer to StabiBooking.

Group Study Rooms at the site Potsdamer Straße will remain closed due to long-term constructions until further notice. For group work there are tables and seats in the Entrance Hall.

Our provider Bibliocopy offers library users scanners, printers and digitization facilities i.e. for scanning library collections, as well as a selection of office supplies. All devices are equipped with a card for self-service, which can be loaded with credit. Scanning and copying equipment is available within the reading room areas during all opening hours. 

The service times of the copy facilities in both buildings: Mo-Wed, Fri and Sat 11am-5pm, Thur 12pm-6pm.

During service hours, card loading, service and advice, office material sales and the acceptance of repro or service orders are possible.

There is also a scantent in each building to enable easy scanning with an appropriate smartphone app for free and up to A3 format. Exactly where to find and how to use them is explained in this German blog entry. Furthermore, three microfilm scanners are available in the Newspaper Reading Room at the Haus Unter den Linden. Please  reserve an appointment in advance.

Carrels are available to you for more extensive academic work with the collections of the Staatsbibliothek. Book a carrel online. For further information on booking conditions, please visit StabiBooking.

For people with severe disabilities and pregnant women one carrel is available at both sites. Please enquire about free capacities via raumbuchung@sbb.spk-berlin.de / using the keyword "Carrel."

Microform readers are available in the reading rooms.

Unter den Linden

Potsdamer Straße

In both buildings you can book StabiBoxes online for storing your documents. For more information, please click on StabiBooking.

 

Study desks and computers with access to the internet and to licensed databases are available in the reading room. Internet access via Wifi or Eduroam is, of course, possible. For more information please have a look at the Wireless Portal. If you encounter difficulties with the Wifi access, please contact staff at the information, you may also use the contact form in the Wireless Portal.

The start of print-jobs from your laptop is possible. View instructions on the pages of the copy-shop.

You can bring your laptop or netbook (without bag) with you into the reading rooms, power sockets are available at all study places. If you wish to transport work materials, we would provide a carry basket for you.

Study Desks Unter den Linden:

Atlantis

  • 250 study desks
  • 27 carrels

70 study desks on the 3rd floor can be booked online for up to 14 hours a day and up to 7 days in advance for single or consecutive hours. For further information on booking conditions refer to StabiBooking.

Alexandria

You can reserve a carrel 

  • 32 study desks, 8 database and internet workstations

Jerusalem

  • 12 study desks
  • 4 group study rooms (overall capacity: 28 persons)

Group study rooms can be booked online. For further information on booking conditions refer to StabiBooking.

Sakya

  • 18 study desks

Utopia

  • 16 study desks

Study Desks Potsdamer Straße:

  • 575 study desks, 27 database and internet workstations

Roughly 100 study desks on the 2nd and 3rd floor can be booked online for up to 14 hours a day and up to 7 days in advance for single or consecutive hours. For further information on booking conditions refer to StabiBooking.

  • 17 carrels

Carrels are booked online. For further information on booking conditions refer to StabiBooking.