Academy Library – former Chemistry Laboratory

Before relocating to this building in 2009, the Library of the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts (HAZU) had been housed in several locations, with its main headquarters in the Academy Palace and additional storage space in Medvedgradska Street.

Space and structural issues

From its founding in 1867, the Library was located on the first floor of the eastern wing of the Academy Palace. However, by 1907, when the collection had reached around 45,000 volumes, the space had become too cramped, and the weight of the books posed a structural risk to the building. Plans were therefore made to move it to the ground floor.

After a partial relocation in 1937, a full renovation took place in 1947. The Library left its original premises on the first floor of the eastern wing and moved into the ground-floor rooms of the Palace, which had been vacated by the Archaeological Museum.

By 2004, however, the storage capacities in the ground floor and basement of the HAZU Palace were filled to the very last meter, making relocation to a new space unavoidable.

History of the building

What makes this building particularly special is its original purpose. It was the first structure built specifically for the needs of the University of Zagreb—a modern Chemical Laboratory that served students and scientists for more than a hundred years. It was a significant step forward for the city’s education and scientific development.

The building was designed in 1883–1884 by the renowned architect Hermann Bollé, the man who shaped some of Zagreb’s most iconic landmarks—from the Cathedral to Mirogoj Cemetery. Here, Bollé demonstrated his mastery of the Neo-Renaissance style, creating a structure that radiates dignity and refinement.

The HAZU Library building stands out for its lively façade: the lower section is clad in stone, the middle in ochre-yellow rustication, and the upper in reddish-brown brick—a combination that gives it warmth and elegance.

The richly decorated roof cornice features sgraffito wall ornaments and cartouches with the names of famous chemists. The use of sgraffito for façade decoration was characteristic of Historicist architecture, and Bollé drew on this somewhat forgotten technique several times.

Above the central entrance is a narrow balcony with a balustrade. The entrance to the balcony is topped with a triangular pediment containing a cartouche with the construction year, and above it is the relief coat of arms of the Triune Kingdom.

During the building’s conversion into a library (2001–2009), led by academic architects Miroslav Begović, Velimir Neidhardt, and Ante Vulin, the historical architecture was successfully combined with modern functional solutions. The former lecture hall is now a multimedia room, while the two side atriums have been transformed into bright reading rooms with glass roofs.

Memorial Room of Nobel Laureates Lavoslav Ružička and Vladimir Prelog

Because the Chemical Laboratory previously occupied the building, a Memorial Room dedicated to Croatian Nobel laureates—chemists Lavoslav Ružička and Vladimir Prelog—was set up in 2001. It is a multimedia exhibition featuring numerous documents, letters, photographs, and personal items.

The section dedicated to Ružička includes the original diploma for his 1939 Nobel Prize. Items from Ružička’s estate were donated by Prof. Dr. Nikola Jović.

The Prelog exhibition includes part of his professional library, furniture from his study, the suit he wore at the Nobel Prize ceremony in 1975, and a collection of matchboxes from hotels around the world that he gathered during his travels. Prelog’s estate was donated by his wife Kamila and his son Jan Prelog, with some items contributed by his former students.

A dedicated information desk also presents numerous details about the Nobel Prize process, Alfred Nobel, and past laureates.

Library collection

When the Library moved into the new building on Strossmayer Square in 2009, approximately 400,000 volumes were transferred, stored on more than 7.5 kilometers of shelving.

The oldest books in the collection date back to the Library’s founding in 1861, when lawyer Adalbert Schauff donated 600 books.

The most valuable collection is the library of Ivan Kukuljević Sakcinski (1816–1889), a prominent Croatian historian and politician. Purchased by the Academy in 1868, it contained as many as 10,000 volumes and forms the core of the Library’s most important holdings.

Over time, the Library expanded its collection through purchases, exchanges, and donations. Many distinguished individuals donated large numbers of books to the Academy’s Library, and entire private libraries were often bequeathed to it.

Treasures

The HAZU Library preserves an exceptionally valuable collection of old and rare works from the 15th and 16th centuries, including:

• Two incunabulas, including the Missal According to the Law of the Roman Court (1483)
• Elegiarum et carminum libri tres (1477) by Juraj Šižgorić (The Book of Elegies and Poems), the oldest Croatian poetic incunabulum
• De natura angelica (1499) by Juraj Dragišić, his most significant theological work, “On the Nature of the Heavenly Spirits We Call Angels”
• The only known surviving copy of the first Croatian novel Planine (Mountains) by Petar Zoranić (1569)
• The Flaciana collection (69 titles) of Matija Vlačić Ilirik
• Glagolitic books from the Senj and Rijeka printing houses from the early 16th century

Since 1975, the old and rare books have been specially protected and stored in a vault under controlled, optimal microclimatic conditions.