Ornate wood carvings, rich Australian history and the atmosphere of a forgotten time were all features that placed the South Australian State Library's Mortlock Wing in a list of the top 20 most beautiful libraries of the world.
Listed alongside architectural greats from Vienna, Oxford, Alexandria, Venice and Prague, the Mortlock Wing is featured in the compiled list by Travel and Leisure website.
Opened in 1884, the wing was once home to South Australia's museum, art and library collections, before all grew too large for the building and were separated into the new museum, art gallery and library premises along Adelaide's North Terrace.
The wing still features original furniture and rough iron hand rails with painted gold features.
The 130-year-old chairs are much smaller than what would be supplied today and a further sign that humans were now taller is seen with the addition of a steel handrail along the balconies to improve the safety of the much lower original.
The library wing is still a popular place for students from nearby universities to find quiet corners to study.
It's just a magical place to study
Modern laptops and tablets look strangely at home on the sculptured wooden furniture.
Enjoying the serenity and historic feel of the wing, a student studying a double degree in Law and International Studies, types in solitude on her laptop.
"It's such a magical place to study," she says, enjoying the quiet before other students arrive.
The Dent and Sons clock that ticks quietly above the main area was gifted by astronomer, meteorologist and electrical engineer Sir Charles Todd in 1887.
Todd was responsible for linking much of Australia together by telegram line, including overseeing the 2897 kilometre Adelaide to Darwin line in the 1870s.
The clock still stands sentry over the main hall, hand wound and adjusted weekly by library staff.
