The New Law and Humanities Library
The project for the new Law and Humanities Library involves the functional redevelopment of the library’s spaces, collections and services into four integrated hubs, each with a distinct identity.
The first stage of the project was the refurbishment of Sala Centrale, inaugurated on 11 January 2023. The room now serves as the service hub for all library spaces and a key reference point for the Via Festa del Perdono campus. Sala Centrale is primarily dedicated to studying and learning. It provides access to the law course reading lists together with a selection of examination texts for humanities and geography.
Work began in July 2023 on the redevelopment of the Nuova Crociera, which includes the Crociera, Sottocrociera, the Sala Common Law e Diritto internazionale, and the Area Pozzo. The redesigned space will feature a single entrance, opening onto the portico of Largo Richini, echoing the original entrance of the fifteenth-century Ca’ Granda. All law collections, currently dispersed across different rooms of the library, will be brought together in the basement level and made available on open shelves, offering a comprehensive overview of the various areas of law. Books and journals will be organised into disciplinary sectors and thematic groups, enabling students and researchers to locate materials more easily and efficiently. On the ground floor, the most widely used humanities collections will be directly accessible, with a significant portion available for loan. The new layout is designed to respond to the diverse needs of the academic community and will include areas for individual study, informal learning and social spaces, and workspaces dedicated to researchers. The services provided in Sala Centrale and Nuova Crociera will operate as a single coordinated system. The circulation of materials will be organised to minimise movement within the library.
The new Sala del Settecento was inaugurated on 4 November 2024. The room increases the number of study places by incorporating the former Manhattan computer room. Within the overall project, Sala del Settecento will be dedicated to the conservation of the modern special collections and retrospective holdings of the Law and Humanities Library.
Sala Senato will house the library’s rare book collections, ensuring their preservation and enhancement through the expertise of specialised staff.
The library storage areas will also be expanded and reorganised to improve the preservation and management of materials.
Once the construction works are completed, the fitting-out phase of the new library will begin and will continue throughout 2027.
The new library is intended to become a central hub for learning, research and Third Mission activities, located in one of the most historically and artistically significant sites in the city of Milan.
Key Concepts of the Project
The Spaces of the New Library
A reorganisation project that brings together study, research and comfort within renewed and functional spaces.
The Library Development Project
The strategic reorganisation of collections includes a comprehensive analysis, revision and redistribution, aimed at improving accessibility and usability.
