Dezeen Showroom: designed as an ode to books and the people that love them, Bruno Rainaldi's Ptolomeo shelf for Opinion Ciatti turns the precarious book stack into a design object.

Ptolomeo is a freestanding bookcase with a minimal structure that becomes "invisible" as its thin shelves are filled with books.

Rainaldi created the shelf in 2003 as a tribute to homes where books are cherished, and where they are found stacked in piles so high "they seem to mock the law of gravity".

His Ptolomeo shelf lets users enjoy the aesthetic of this form of book storage, along with the benefits of a stable structure.

The shelf is named after Ptolemy I Soter, the Greek general who founded the library of Alexandria.

It is made of stainless steel and can be optionally finished with lacquer in black, white or Corten effect.

It is available in three sizes, and can be augmented with an extra shelf accessory to support magazines or large-format books.

Product: Ptolomeo
Designer: Bruno Rainaldi
Brand: Opinion Ciatti

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