Coimbra, Portugal, May 29, 2025 (Lusa) - The University of Coimbra (UC) plans to begin construction of the new Law Faculty library in the upper part of the city in 2026, at a cost of €28 million, designed by architect Álvaro Siza Vieira.
This is a decades-long aspiration, but one that has only begun to take shape in the last 20 years. It will be built on the university campus of Pole I, on the perimeter of the Palácio dos Melos (former building of the Faculty of Pharmacy), in the vicinity of the Paço das Escolas, the Faculty of Arts and the Old Cathedral.
"It is a historic moment for Coimbra and for the country to have a building like this designed by Álvaro Siza Vieira. I have no doubt that when it is completed it will be a national monument with a fantastic setting overlooking the upper part of the city, a UNESCO World Heritage Site," said the dean of the University of Coimbra, Amílcar Falcão, at the presentation of the project today.
Siza Vieira, who did not attend the conference, said in a video shown at the session that it is "a challenge and a reason for intense mobilisation for any designer, because it is a unique opportunity to build on the acropolis of Coimbra, at the foot of the great University building and above the Cathedral, the houses and the lower part of the city".
The new library will house more than 400,000 works that comprise the bibliographic collection of the UC Faculty of Law, one of the most renowned in the world, amassed over centuries.
The future building is divided into large compartments, including reading rooms, archives, technical and administrative services, and access and circulation areas, with the Atrium, the Great Reading Room, the Meeting Room, and the Book and Magazine Storage Room serving as reference points.
"The building does not yet exist and is already a World Heritage Site, as the collection we have is priceless and deserves the priceless building that will house it and make the Faculty of Law even more valuable," emphasised Amílcar Falcão.
The dean of the UC said he did not doubt that in half a century, when looking at the university campus in the upper part of the city, "you will see the difference of having the new library listed as a World Heritage Site with the name of Siza Vieira".
Retired professor Avelãs Nunes, former director of the Faculty of Law, who was honoured today for being the main driver behind the new library, also considered that Siza Vieira's project "will be a valuable work of art that will enrich the country."
Preliminary archaeological and heritage work has been underway since the first quarter of this year and will continue until the beginning of next year, due to the site's location on the city's acropolis and within the area classified by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
If no changes to the project are needed because of archaeological finds, UC Vice-Dean Alfredo Dias believes that the public tender for the work could be launched next year, so that it could be finished by 2029 at the earliest.
The Portuguese government is providing funding through a multi-year contract.
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