New York Public Library, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building
The New York Public Library, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building
Marble lions guarding a vast reading room
⚠ Reading room visits are short
- Hours
- Reading room has separate Monday-Saturday visiting hours; see the NYPL site
- Tickets
- Free
- Address
- Fifth Avenue at 42nd Street, on the east side of Bryant Park
Two marble lions flank the steps, and there is always a photo queue. Inside, white marble halls and ceiling murals lead up to the third-floor Rose Main Reading Room, where the painted ceiling and long wooden tables look like a film set. The building is free to enter, but the reading room has set visiting hours, so time your visit. Bryant Park right behind it is the natural place to sit afterwards.