Baroque library design sacrificed reading space for visual display

Evidence

The baroque library was a visual delight, but one that sacrificed study space for beauty, and relegated books to the same function as lavish wallpaper. The ordinary needs of readers – desks or lecterns for study – were sacrificed to accommodate marvellous objects that epitomised the wonders of inquiry. — Andrew Pettegree, Arthur der Weduwen, The Library- A Fragile History, 494

Categorization

• XREF: Reverses modern assumptions that libraries prioritize reader access; the design philosophy treated books partly as décor. — connects to: Baroque monastic libraries prioritized spectacle over reading accommodation — Andrew Pettegree, Arthur der Weduwen, The Library- A Fragile History, 958; Overcrowded engaged classrooms degrade into edutainment spectacles — bell hooks, Teaching to Transgress: Education as…, 320
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Andrew Pettegree, Arthur der Weduwen, The Library- A Fragile History, 494

Broader Connections

• Baroque monastic libraries prioritized spectacle over reading accommodation #corroborates (0.90) — Andrew Pettegree, Arthur der Weduwen, The Library- A Fragile History, 958