Mafra - Its books

Reading . . . for all, even the same who hunted.
In the central corridor, a globe from the 1st half of the 18th century stands out under a wooden table made for studying and drawing maps. The Rococo-style bookcases are made of wood from Brazil and house more than 30,000 rare volumes from the 14th to the 19th centuries.
The library is considered the palace's greatest treasure. Built by Portuguese architect Manuel Caetano de Sousa, the site has a cross-shaped plan. It is divided into two floors, is 83 meters long and has vaults up to 13 meters high.
The books are preserved with the unusual help of a colony of bats that live in the library. At night, the animals fly freely and feed on harmful insects that could eat the sheets of paper.