The Rotunda

You are now standing in what was once known as the Rotunda Library. It once served as a library for the former Supreme Court, housing legal publications and functioning as a resource centre for Judges, Judicial Commissioners and Officers. Much of the furnishing in the library was designed by William Henry Swaffield, who designed the desk in the Chief Justice's office. On the ground floor, reading tables were designed to be arranged in a circular fashion, echoing the rotunda’s design. In addition to the tables, there were bookshelves and bookcases nestled among the columns. On the mezzanine level, bookcases lined the library’s curved walls. These carved and glass panelled bookcases are made of teak and look as if they have draped themselves against the wall. The library used to house more than 20,000 publications arranged in volumes and many of them were leather bound. It was reported in 1939 that the court librarian would receive a list of publications required by the judges and lawyers when court was in session. He would select the requested publications and stack them into a huge woven cane basket which required two court officials to carry. The baskets were returned to the court librarian at the end of each case. The origin of the name Rotunda is derived from the Latin word rotundus. It refers to a building which is round and at times capped by a dome. The Rotunda Dome is illuminated with natural light from sixteen arched windows in the dome itself, as well as windows on the ground level. The Rotunda dome is visible from the former Supreme Court rooftop on level four. You can tap an image from your screen, and you will be able to take a much closer look later in the tour. The Rotunda ceased to function as the court library in 1991 when it became apparent that it would run out of space for the expanding number of publications, and the library was moved to the City Hall into a space two and a half times larger. Image © Darren Soh