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The interior of the library
Above the front doors of the library
The Anne & Jerome Fisher Fine Arts Library, also known as The Furness Library, and Fine Arts Library is a library located on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania. The building was designed by architect Frank Furness, and the cornerstone was laid in October 1888. Construction on the library was finished in 1890, and the building was dedicated in 1891. [2] The building contains stained glass windows inscribed with literary quotations, chosen by Horace Howard Furness (Frank's older brother), a Shakespearean scholar and prominent member of Penn's faculty in the late nineteenth century. [3]
The Furness Library served as the University's primary library until the construction of Van Pelt Library in the mid-20th century. Today, the library houses collections related to architecture, landscape architecture, city and regional planning, historic preservation, history of art, and studio arts.
The library was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1976. The building was restored from 1986-1990, and rededicated in 1992 as the "Anne & Jerome Fisher Fine Arts Library" after the primary benefactors of the restoration, Anne and Jerome Fisher.
[edit] In popular culture
The library was featured prominently as a location in the 1993 film Philadelphia, although it was portrayed as a law library.
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