Location from The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson
The City of Bells, carved into seaside cliffs — home to the Palanaeum, Roshar's greatest library, and secretly ruled by Taravangian and his Diagram.
Kharbranth is a city for scholars the way Alethkar is a kingdom for soldiers. The Palanaeum draws ardents, philosophers, and researchers from across Roshar, its collection of texts rivaling anything the Vorin church maintains. Shallan came here to study under Jasnah Kholin, and the city's intellectual atmosphere shaped her transformation from a desperate thief into a scholar in her own right. Beneath the scholarly veneer, Kharbranth is Taravangian's domain. The old king — seemingly a doddering fool — secretly authored the Diagram, a document of terrifying genius written during the one day Cultivation granted him supernatural intelligence. The Diagram predicted the coming Desolation and outlined a ruthless strategy for ensuring human survival, including assassinating world leaders and sacrificing entire populations. Taravangian used Kharbranth's hospital to secretly harvest death rattles — prophecies spoken by the dying — to refine his predictions.
A city built into the face of a cliff overlooking the sea. Buildings cling to the rock at impossible angles, connected by staircases and rope bridges. Bronze bells hang everywhere, ringing in the wind. The Palanaeum is carved deep into the cliff — a vast library spiraling downward into darkness, its shelves holding thousands of years of accumulated knowledge.
Also known as: Kharbranth, the City of Bells