Have you ever wanted to design your private library with a well-known curator? If you are ensconced in the exquisite Pompadour Suite at Le Meurice, do crawl out of those exquisite expensive linens and mosey to Librairie Galignani, an astonishing bookstore over two centuries old, opened in 1520, it is merely yards away.  Or even better, let us schedule a private consultation with Executive Director, Danielle Cillien Sabatier, and let the experts assist you in curating a personal library on your beloved pursuits. Architecture, gardens, wine, fashion; there are always impossible to find books on every avocation. Is your best friend a Chanel aficionado, you will discover slews of books on Coco for a beloved birthday gift. Something for everyone at Librairie Galignani, the casual reader or assistance with a sophisticated library collection.

With three departments, English, French and Fine Arts, Librairie Galignani offers a range of rare diversity and guarantees quality service, excellence and know-how provided by expert and bilingual booksellers. The bookstore offer is supplemented by a website allowing you to reserve or buy online and to ship or have your purchases delivered. In addition, many events (signings, conferences, meetings, exhibitions, round tables, debates or private parties) are regularly organized in the bookshop, do check the schedule before your next visit to The City of Light.  

The English department offers all the English and American classics. The latest publications in literature, biographies and essays rub shoulders with political and financial news. In addition to a large selection of history books, there is a strong specialization in Anglo-Saxon university publications,

The Fine Arts department, rich in all the latest news and a large collection of French books, also favors works (exhibition catalogs, various monographs) from abroad, mainly from the United States, England and Italy, as well as a small number of rare and out of print books on fashion, jewelry and the decorative arts.

Faced with the abundance of publications, the French-language books section offers a selection likely to satisfy the most diverse curiosities in literature, history, essays, current affairs and youth. You can also discover or rediscover the great names of literature in the La Pléiade collection.

History: The Galignanis were among the first to use the recently invented printing press in order to distribute their books to a larger audience. Beginning in 1520, Simone Galignani published in Venice a Latin grammar (the oldest “Galignani” known).

However, their greatest success was the  Geografia  by PTOLEMAUS published in 1597, an incredible bestseller in both the 16th and 17th centuries. Galignani eventually reissued multiple editions.

At the end of the 17th century, Giovanni Antonio Galignani, born near Brescia, left an economically declining Venice for London, and shortly after, Paris, where he opened in 1801, on rue Vivienne, not only a bookshop, but also a reading room specialized in the English language, while continuing his publishing business. In addition, there was the creation of Galignani’s Messenger, a daily newspaper and reference point for the English-speaking community on the Continent. Some of the greatest English authors of the time contributed to the newspaper, and their books were also published by Galignani (Byron, Wordsworth, Thackeray, Scott …). Galignani then settled in 1856 at rue de Rivoli, which remains the current address.

Upon his death in 1882, William Galignani left the company to his nephew, Charles Jeancourt-Galignani, whose direct descendants still own it today. The newspaper and the publishing house were discontinued at the beginning of the 20th century, but the bookshop continued to thrive. Not allowed to stock English editions during the German occupation, André Jeancourt-Galignani opened a section devoted to art books. Since the post-war period, the Fine Arts Department has been an undeniable success.

Concerning libraries, the refined staff members work with all the museums for their curator’s libraries, the major luxury hotels like Ritz, Crillon, Le Meurice, Plaza Athénée, George, Prince de Galles, Pavillon de la Reine and lately Cheval Blanc and Bulgari. They have created libraries for Cartier, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, and other luxury brands. Librairie Galigani also collaborates with famous decorators and have selected book assortments for private clients either through their decorators or directly. 

Highly Recommend!

https://www.galignani.fr/notre-librairie-presentation/ssh-5463