Biblioteca Pública Virgilio Barco

This guide to the Biblioteca Pública Virgilio Barco in Bogotá follows architect Rogelio Salmona's design for a public library sunk five meters below street level and laid out as a spiral, shaped like a snail shell. You'll hear why he named the entrance the room of the lost steps, and how the water mirrors, brick rooflines and circular halls draw on patterns borrowed from the Quimbaya and Aztec. Stand at the water's edge near the entrance ramp to hear the sound Salmona built in on purpose.