The Black Diamond. No it’s not the name of a cartoon. It’s actually the name of the Royal Library nestling on the way down to Copenhagen Harbour so that the spectacular building in black Zimbabwean granite is mirrored in the harbour waters. The building was finished in 1999 and heralded a new, modern era in the city’s architecture.

On Saturdays at 3 p.m. there is a guided tour that takes you through the impressive original Holm building from 1906, Den Sorte Diamant itself and the old Danske Sal book storehouse. The tour costs DKK 40, tickets are available in reception and give access to all of Diamantens exhibitions including, among others, the National Photographic Museum.

If a tour doesn’t fit into your programme, you can wander around yourself, buy a cup of coffee in the café, walk through the bookshop or take the travelator up to the reading room and view Per Kirkeby’s 200 square metre ceiling painting.

Det Kongelige Bibliotek, Søren Kierkegaards Plads 1, 1016 København K. Open Mon-Fri 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.. Sat 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.