Also known as Senado Library, Civic and Municipal Library is located at the Municipal Affairs Bureau Building (IAM Building)–also known as the Leal Senado Building–in Senado Square. It is the smallest and oldest one in Macau yet it keeps the most valuable collection. Senado Library was modeled after the Convent of Mafra library in Portugal and is elegantly furnished in the style of the era of D. Joao V.
The Civic and Municipal Library holds more than 20,000 books, including antique publications and rare editions. A majority of the books belonged to prominent people from Macau like Camilo Pessanha and Pedro Nolasco da Silva.
Nowadays, the library’s specialty is rare 17th to mid-20th Century books, as well as the collection of old Portuguese newspapers published in the late 19th and early 20th Century.
Opening hours: Monday to Saturday from 9:00am to 5:30pm
Also read: Macau Landmark: Leal Senado Building
Also read: Ultimate Guide to the Historic Centre of Macao