5
Overview
Note: To read the intro to the project and see Update #1, click this link.
Note: To follow high-quality screenshots, click this Sub-Reddit link.
Welcome to the most ambitious project of my life -- and one of the largest and most time-consuming in Minecraft history, by a single builder in Creative Mode. I'm building this by hand (Creative Mode, without mods, etc.) in 1.8.9 since I dislike 1.9+. The Texture Pack is one of the greatest I've ever seen: Winthor Medieval.
A lot has happened over the last few weeks, so I'm going to skip over minor changes and progress for now.
Report #1: General Update
The entire project is going to be sci-fi, set in the year 2463 (homage/Easter egg to The Fifth Element (1997), where my name, zOrg, comes from -- but the time is advanced exactly 200 years). The library itself will largely remain mixed 20th century style, including the underground. My narrative is still the Order of Light. The world is still contained to 3,000 by 3,000 blocks, and I'll be using most of it!
I'm increasing the Bookshelves from 2 to 5 million, and adding non-book items, along with other library buildings, underground gardens, plazas, and the arcology structure (facade only). In total, the gardens will be larger than the largest in the world, the Gardens of Versailles.
The front ziggurat-like structure was based on concept art I found years ago. There would be a large train and tram station to the west (underground).
The over-sized lamppost is based on Albert Speer's lamppost, only white instead of black. There are no cars now, only trams and pathways.
The interior design was based on the New Reich Chancellery (white walls (White Stained Clay), plasterwork (using Quartz), and granite floors and walls), coupled with the Malfoy Manor staircase from the Harry Potter universe, and a random idea I had to create a freestanding mezzanine (all limestone, using Sandstone). The archways are my own design.
Report #2: Ceremonial Fire
I added an extra courtyard piece between the arcology entrance and the triumphal arch, and added a large ceremonial fire pit in the centre, buffered by thin trees (Oak Fences + Spruce Leaves + Cobblestone Stairs).
Report #3: Exterior & Interior
Both interior and exterior went hand-in-hand until I slowly mapped everything out. I needed to take into account both functionality and aesthetics. The side entrances are a smaller version of the facade. The back entrance is a larger version of the House of Art (Haus der Kunst; Germany).
I made the windows full length and removed the floors. Now, the interior proper is one large space (20 to 70 metres/blocks tall) divied by rooms, halls, and vast corridors.
I used Andesite for pillars inside and sometimes marble stairs (Quartz Slabs).
The mezzanine is going to open downward in a kind of inverted mall layout. Structural issues are not a concern, as the underground is actually built within the arcology, not under the Earth, so I'm assuming some sci-fi sort of supports and technology to hold it all together.
The interior is monumental scale. In reality, it's ill-sized. This was required simply due to the limitations of Minecraft (I did try 1:1 scale, but the staircase had to be grossly over-sized to work, which forced everything else to be over-sized, and to meet the vastnes of the exterior).
I looked into everything I could, at scale: largest shopping malls; largest train stations; largest museums; largest airports; largest libraries; largest temples. I even looked into London's catherals of power (power plants) and futuristic city concept art. Anything extremely high-volume in terms of human traffic, retail power, and/or mounmental appearace.
I ultimately looked into vast fictional buildings and structures for some inspiration. Nothing real is this large, other than certain open-air complexes and entire islands or areas of cities. For example, the Giza Pyramid Complex is 40,000 acres, Coney Island is roughly 440 acres, and Upper West Side (New York) is 1,200 acres.
The surface is roughly 3,000 (north-south) by 2,000 blocks. The Webways (what I'm calling the underground area) is almost 3,000 by 3,000 blocks. More on this in the next update.
Report #4: Cathedral of Stone
Along with the science fictional, I was in any case inspired by the Mines of Moria and the concept I call 'cathedral of stone' (compared to cathedrals proper (which can be understood in secular terms as cathedrals of light) or cathedrals of power (such as Edwardian power plants)). Other such terms for grand libraries and structures include 'citadel of humanity' and 'temple of literature'.
Indeed, this is not a new concept exactly, given that Sterling Memorial Library of Yale University is literally a church-like structure (where their old one was already chapel-like, the College Library). This makes use of a tower structure for the main library, inspired by the Nebraska State Capitol building. Large train stations and various governmental buildings also often take on a catheral-like quality.
There is a school of thought: libraries are places not of 'books' but 'people'. I took both to the extreme. However, it's also set up in the tradition of museums and mixed-usage libraries (specialist, public, museum, and collection).
The general ground level layout (rooms, etc.) is taken from the House of Art (Germany) coupled with the New York Public Library and Harvard Univerity Library.
Note: I'll show close-ups of the interior in a later update. I'll also show close-ups of the exterior when it's actually completed (i.e. when the roof is on).
Report #5: The Final Final Plans
I'm convinced these are truly the final plans this time. I've locked almost everything in, 1:1 scale, and began mapping it out. The final image shows the surface plans in fair detail.
In Update #4, I hope to complete the entire surface Library (interior and roof), and make more progress elsewhere, and start mapping out the Webways and entire surface complex (gardens and Arcology). We'll see. :)
-
Bookshelf counter: 0/5,000,000
Block counter: 1,100,000/40,000,000
Hours counter: 180/3,000
-
'As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being.' - Jung
'Whatever is my right as a man is also the right of another.' - Paine
'Knowledge is power.' - Jefferson
'For stony limits cannot hold love out.' - the Order of Light's motto [Shakespeare]
'The place of care of the soul.' - the Library's motto [Hecataeus]
Note: To read the intro to the project and see Update #1, click this link.
Note: To follow high-quality screenshots, click this Sub-Reddit link.
Welcome to the most ambitious project of my life -- and one of the largest and most time-consuming in Minecraft history, by a single builder in Creative Mode. I'm building this by hand (Creative Mode, without mods, etc.) in 1.8.9 since I dislike 1.9+. The Texture Pack is one of the greatest I've ever seen: Winthor Medieval.
A lot has happened over the last few weeks, so I'm going to skip over minor changes and progress for now.
Report #1: General Update
The entire project is going to be sci-fi, set in the year 2463 (homage/Easter egg to The Fifth Element (1997), where my name, zOrg, comes from -- but the time is advanced exactly 200 years). The library itself will largely remain mixed 20th century style, including the underground. My narrative is still the Order of Light. The world is still contained to 3,000 by 3,000 blocks, and I'll be using most of it!
I'm increasing the Bookshelves from 2 to 5 million, and adding non-book items, along with other library buildings, underground gardens, plazas, and the arcology structure (facade only). In total, the gardens will be larger than the largest in the world, the Gardens of Versailles.
The front ziggurat-like structure was based on concept art I found years ago. There would be a large train and tram station to the west (underground).
The over-sized lamppost is based on Albert Speer's lamppost, only white instead of black. There are no cars now, only trams and pathways.
The interior design was based on the New Reich Chancellery (white walls (White Stained Clay), plasterwork (using Quartz), and granite floors and walls), coupled with the Malfoy Manor staircase from the Harry Potter universe, and a random idea I had to create a freestanding mezzanine (all limestone, using Sandstone). The archways are my own design.
Report #2: Ceremonial Fire
I added an extra courtyard piece between the arcology entrance and the triumphal arch, and added a large ceremonial fire pit in the centre, buffered by thin trees (Oak Fences + Spruce Leaves + Cobblestone Stairs).
Report #3: Exterior & Interior
Both interior and exterior went hand-in-hand until I slowly mapped everything out. I needed to take into account both functionality and aesthetics. The side entrances are a smaller version of the facade. The back entrance is a larger version of the House of Art (Haus der Kunst; Germany).
I made the windows full length and removed the floors. Now, the interior proper is one large space (20 to 70 metres/blocks tall) divied by rooms, halls, and vast corridors.
I used Andesite for pillars inside and sometimes marble stairs (Quartz Slabs).
The mezzanine is going to open downward in a kind of inverted mall layout. Structural issues are not a concern, as the underground is actually built within the arcology, not under the Earth, so I'm assuming some sci-fi sort of supports and technology to hold it all together.
The interior is monumental scale. In reality, it's ill-sized. This was required simply due to the limitations of Minecraft (I did try 1:1 scale, but the staircase had to be grossly over-sized to work, which forced everything else to be over-sized, and to meet the vastnes of the exterior).
I looked into everything I could, at scale: largest shopping malls; largest train stations; largest museums; largest airports; largest libraries; largest temples. I even looked into London's catherals of power (power plants) and futuristic city concept art. Anything extremely high-volume in terms of human traffic, retail power, and/or mounmental appearace.
I ultimately looked into vast fictional buildings and structures for some inspiration. Nothing real is this large, other than certain open-air complexes and entire islands or areas of cities. For example, the Giza Pyramid Complex is 40,000 acres, Coney Island is roughly 440 acres, and Upper West Side (New York) is 1,200 acres.
The surface is roughly 3,000 (north-south) by 2,000 blocks. The Webways (what I'm calling the underground area) is almost 3,000 by 3,000 blocks. More on this in the next update.
Report #4: Cathedral of Stone
Along with the science fictional, I was in any case inspired by the Mines of Moria and the concept I call 'cathedral of stone' (compared to cathedrals proper (which can be understood in secular terms as cathedrals of light) or cathedrals of power (such as Edwardian power plants)). Other such terms for grand libraries and structures include 'citadel of humanity' and 'temple of literature'.
Indeed, this is not a new concept exactly, given that Sterling Memorial Library of Yale University is literally a church-like structure (where their old one was already chapel-like, the College Library). This makes use of a tower structure for the main library, inspired by the Nebraska State Capitol building. Large train stations and various governmental buildings also often take on a catheral-like quality.
There is a school of thought: libraries are places not of 'books' but 'people'. I took both to the extreme. However, it's also set up in the tradition of museums and mixed-usage libraries (specialist, public, museum, and collection).
The general ground level layout (rooms, etc.) is taken from the House of Art (Germany) coupled with the New York Public Library and Harvard Univerity Library.
Note: I'll show close-ups of the interior in a later update. I'll also show close-ups of the exterior when it's actually completed (i.e. when the roof is on).
Report #5: The Final Final Plans
I'm convinced these are truly the final plans this time. I've locked almost everything in, 1:1 scale, and began mapping it out. The final image shows the surface plans in fair detail.
In Update #4, I hope to complete the entire surface Library (interior and roof), and make more progress elsewhere, and start mapping out the Webways and entire surface complex (gardens and Arcology). We'll see. :)
-
Bookshelf counter: 0/5,000,000
Block counter: 1,100,000/40,000,000
Hours counter: 180/3,000
-
'As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being.' - Jung
'Whatever is my right as a man is also the right of another.' - Paine
'Knowledge is power.' - Jefferson
'For stony limits cannot hold love out.' - the Order of Light's motto [Shakespeare]
'The place of care of the soul.' - the Library's motto [Hecataeus]
| Progress | 5% complete |
| Tags |
tools/tracking
6262204
2
the-great-palace-library-update-3-world-s-largest-library-palace-amp-gardens-creative-mode-1-8-9
mehertu
sniffercraft34
Yuzukodo
Daralexen
That Anonymous Mouse Guy
Ww2guru73
Captain_JEK
DoomStryker
Neekoris
TomOnMars
BlockyDuck
Create an account or sign in to comment.