The library of the Strahov Monastery in the Hradčany district of Prague is one of the most valuable and well-preserved historical libraries. The monastery, founded in the 12th century, is much older than the library. Nevertheless, the book Depository in Strahov is the second oldest in the Czech Republic. The oldest manuscript in the book treasury is the Strahov Gospel dating from 860.

The collection, which has almost 300,000 books (including 3,000 manuscripts and 1,500 incunabula), is divided into two halls – Theosophical in the Baroque style and Philosophical in the classicist style.

The oldest part of the current library, the Theosophical Hall, was built in 1671-1674. The vaulted philosophical hall dates from 1794 and occupies two floors in height.

The philosopher's hall, though younger, is larger (length 32 m, width 10 m, height 14 m). In the hall, there is a beautiful painting on the ceiling called "Spiritual development of mankind". This is a brief depiction of the evolution of science and religion in their interaction and searches from ancient times to the founding of the hall. The upper rows of books are accessible only from the gallery, where spiral staircases are hidden on both sides, disguised by false book spines. Among the books there are philosophical, historical works, books on astrology or mathematics. In one of the corners of the hall, there is a figure of the patron Saint of Bohemia – St. Wenceslaus; to the right of him is another patron of the Czech lands – St. Jan Nepomutsky, as well as St. Norbert, the founder of the order.

The Theosophical hall contains works on theology. There are gilded wooden carvings with cartouches and ceiling frescoes above the shelves. There the "first library aid" functioned: the type of literature placed on the shelves was indicated on the wooden shelves.

In addition to books and decor, there are many other interesting objects in the hall. For example, the statue of St. John the Evangelist. He is holding a book bag. This ancient device is intended for traveling or carrying books. Interestingly, there is even a "book wheel", which was used to study several books simultaneously. It rotated so that the books remained in the same position, and the reader was convenient to move between them.

In addition to the main halls, it is worth seeing exhibitions in the connecting corridor (with medical and legal literature), at the end of which a copy of the Strahov Gospel is displayed. The Cabinet of curiosities contains a mysterious narwhal tooth, which for a long time was passed off as a "unicorn horn".