The Sarajevo Library

In August 1992, Sarajevo's national library burned for several days after bombardments during the siege of the city. Hundreds of thousands of books, manuscripts, and archives disappeared in the fire. Residents nevertheless attempted to save works under fire. Several witnesses recount fragments of burned pages falling from the sky above the city.

The Vijećnica building in Sarajevo was constructed at the end of the 19th century under Austro-Hungarian administration. Its architecture mixes Neo-Moorish influences and European administrative monumentality.

Before the Bosnian War, the building housed the National and University Library of Bosnia and Herzegovina containing several hundred thousand books and historical documents. On the night of August 25-26, 1992, the building was hit by bombardments during the siege of Sarajevo. The fire spread rapidly through the interior structures and collections. The blaze became practically impossible to control. Firefighters worked under fire and book reserves involuntarily served as additional fuel.

Residents then formed human chains to attempt to save works despite the risks. Part of the collections was evacuated, but the majority disappeared. Several witnesses describe burned pages carried by wind above the besieged city.

The library's destruction quickly became an international symbol of cultural annihilation during war. It was not only a building that was burning, but an entire documentary memory mixing Ottoman, Austro-Hungarian, and Yugoslav history. The Vijećnica would finally be restored years later, but a large part of the destroyed archives remains irretrievably lost.