John Rylands Library of Cumbrian sandstone, the interior a delicately shaded 'Shawk' stone (from Dalston, varying in colour between sand and a range of pinks) and the exterior, dark red Barbary stone from Penrith. built around an internal steel framed structure and brick arched flooring. The red 'Barbary plain' sandstone, which Champneys believed 'had every chance of proving durable' for the exterior, was an unusual choice in late Victorian Manchester. It proved relatively successful, as an inspection by Champneys in 1900 revealed little softening by the 'effects of an atmosphere somewhat charged with chemicals' although, by 1909 some repairs were needed. The library
Rylands Papyri the Rylands Papyrus iii.458) respectively; Papyrus 31, a fragment of a papyrus manuscript of the "Epistle to the Romans"; and Papyrus 32, a fragment of the "Epistle to Titus." Also held in the collection is Papyrus Rylands 463, a copy of the apocryphal "Gospel of Mary" in Greek, and John Rylands Papyrus 470, a prayer in Koine Greek to the Theotokos, written about 250 CE in brown ink, the earliest known copy of such a prayer. It was acquired by the Library in 1917. Rylands Papyri The Rylands Papyri are a collection of thousands of papyrus fragments and documents from