Main Floor

The main entrance to the building is on the middle of three floors, called the Main floor. To the left of the door a check room has been provided where personal property may be left and where books withdrawn from the Library are controlled. Beyond this desk is the attractive oak paneled central hall where the bust of Nami Jafet is displayed to the right. This room contains the card catalogue and circulation desk, which is provided with a book lift connecting all floors of the stack area. Immediately beyond the check room to the left is the reference room.

To the right behind the Jafet bust is a balcony, planned as a comfortable reading room for current magazines and newspapers. Beyond this, an area given to those who desire to study in groups. This balcony overlooks the main reading room.

To the west of the central hall are the offices of the Librarian and his staff overlooking the reserve reading room. In the northwest corner of the main floor are the work rooms for processing of books, together with smaller rooms for the storage and reading of microfilm and the carrying out of other technical processes.

Ground Floor

The Ground floor, below the Main floor, contains a large exhibition hall with two lounges, one for women and one for men, built out under the courtyard. At the east end of this hall is the main reading room. Here on open shelves is a collection of books, which will eventually number about 4,000 volumes selected for both class work and leisure time reading of students of the freshman year. The room is however freely open to all, and any of the books may be charged for home use at the circulation desk.

Opposite, at the west end of the exhibition hall is the reserve reading room, where books as- signed in various courses may be consulted. Back of this room in the northwest corner is the receiving room for delivery of crates of books which are unpacked here. The receiving room gives access to the freight elevator by which the new books may be distributed to the work rooms above.

Third Floor

The floor above the Main floor contains five seminar rooms, a library staff room and a large terrace which provides an attractive view of Beirut and the neighboring sea and mountains.

The central core of the building on each floor is the stack area where the main body of books is kept. Here are all books belonging to the University not shelved elsewhere in the Jafet Library, in the Medical School or the International College Libraries.

Located in the stacks are 51 carrels or individual study desks, each containing locked drawers and bookshelves. These carrels are assigned by the Librarian to those needing them for for study or research.

The stack area provides space for some 200,000 volumes and can be expanded over the terrace when need arises. It is at present only a little over one-third full. Approximately 500 readers can be comfortably accommodated in the building.

Prof. Khosrof K. Yeramian of the University’s School of Engineering was the general contractor for the construction which was supervised by the Department of Buildings and Grounds.