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Library of Alexandria

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The Great Library of Alexandria in Alexandria, Egypt, was one of the largest and most significant libraries of the ancient world. The library was part of a larger research institution called the Mouseion, which was dedicated to the Muses, the nine goddesses of the arts. The idea of a universal library in Alexandria may have been proposed by Demetrius of Phalerum, an exiled Athenian statesman living in Alexandria, to Ptolemy I Soter, who may have established plans for the Library, but the Library itself was probably not built until the reign of his son Ptolemy II Philadelphus. The Library quickly acquired many papyrus scrolls, owing largely to the Ptolemaic kings' aggressive and well-funded policies for procuring texts. It is unknown precisely how many scrolls were housed at any given time, but estimates range from 40,000 to 400,000 at its height.

Library of Alexandria - Wikipedia Jump to content From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Library in ancient Alexandria, Egypt This article is about the ancient library. For its present-day counterpart, see Bibliotheca Alexandrina . For other uses, see Alexandria Library . "Great Library" redirects here. For the library of Quebec in Montreal, see Grande Bibliothèque . "},"logo_size":{"wt":""},"logo_alt":{"wt":""},"image":{"wt":"ancientlibraryalex.jpg"},"image_size":{"wt":""},"alt":{"wt":""},"caption":{"wt":"Nineteenth-century artistic rendering of the Library of Alexandria by the German artist O

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