Süleymaniye Yazma Eser Kütüphanesi

A library of the Presidency of the Manuscripts Institution of Türkiye, housed in the first and second madrasas of the Süleymaniye complex. It was founded in 1918 as the Süleymaniye Public Library when the Ministry of Endowments gathered the scattered endowment libraries of Istanbul; its core is the library of the Süleymaniye Mosque. Today more than 150 collections, including sultans' libraries such as those of Fatih, Hagia Sophia and Laleli, preserve manuscripts and early printed books in Arabic script. The binding and conservation workshop set up in 1956 is one of its key units. Reader services run on weekdays; the reading room is entered with an ID, or a passport for foreigners, and works are mainly consulted as digital images. Introductory visits are by appointment.