148 Traditionally the family sitting room, the Library today is as Holland left it, save for the plaster ceiling added by John MacVicar Anderson in 1877. Too long for its elevation, Holland harmonized the room by cropping the end bays and inserting the pillars. The books represent the remnants of the astonishing private library amassed by the Second Earl, which at one time was the finest private library in the world. Comprising 40,000 early printed books, including 58 Caxtons, it was sold complete in 1892, and is now the John Rylands Library, Manchester University. THE LIBRARY 149 |