Travel Guide - Sir Robert Ho Tung Library

Posted by ugfanfan on September 10th, 2014

This charming building founded in the 19th century was the country retreat of the late tycoon Robert Ho Tung who purchased it in 1918. The colonial edifice featuring a dome, an arcaded facade, Ionic columns and Chinese-style gardens, was given a modern extension by architect Joy Choi Tin Tin not too long ago. The new four-storey structure in glass and steel has Piranesi-inspired bridges connecting to the old house and a glass roof straddling the transitional space.

Standing amid a quiet and beautiful garden with European-style architectures, Sir Robert Ho Tung Library is a great place for both reading and leisure. As a part of Macau Central Library, Sir Robert Ho Tung Library was initially a mansion built in 1894 and later purchased by Sir Robert Ho Tung, who was a rich Hong Kong businessman and philanthropist. After his death in 1955, the mansion was presented to Macau Government and transformed into a public library according to Sir Robert’s will. Three years later, the library was opened to the public and became a unique garden-style library. Meanwhile, elegant, tranquil, artistic, Sir Robert Ho Tung Library is the biggest library.

The libary is a three-storey building with arched doors and windows. The walls are painted in yellow and partially ivory, looking harmonious with green trees and bright sunshine. The old building is now a library of ancient books and an exhibition site. Many valuable ancient books, religious books, Chinese-English dictionaries, Chinese-Portuguese dictionaries and some other books are housed in the Ho Tung Library. In front of the old building is an open courtyard with fountains and rockeries. And at the back of it is a charming garden now serving as open reading area. A four-storey modern building was newly built in 2005 next to the back garden, making Sir Robert Ho Tung Library the largest library in Macau. The brand-new building employs glass wall and provides a panoramic view of the beautiful garden. In addition, the library has dinning halls, chatting area and even audiovisual studios for the convenience of readers.

Grace Fan works for a tour agency, chinatourdotcom offering a very wide range of tour service like China panda tours, China themed tours, affordable China tours, Yunnan tours, China Photo Tour , China day tours, China city tours, Tibet Travel, and China Sichuan Tours etc...