ANCIENT LIBRARIES.
Many events have contributed to deprive us of a great part of the literary treasures of antiquity. A very fatal blow was given to literature by the destruction of the Phœnician temples and the Egyptian colleges, when those kingdoms and the countries adjacent, were conquered by the Persians, about 350 years before Christ. The Persians had a great dislike to the religion of the Phœnicians and the Egyptians, and this was one reason for destroying their books, of which Eusebius says they had a great number.
The first celebrated library of antiquity was at Alexandria, and called from thence the Alexandrian library; it owed its foundation to Ptolemy Soter, king of Egypt, though his Son Ptolemy Philadelphus enjoys the reputation of being its founder. This was about 284 years before the Christian æra.
The palace of Ptolemy Philadelphus was the asylum of learned men whom he admired and patronized. He paid particular attention to Euclid, Theocritus, Callimachus, and Lycophron, and by increasing the library, of which his father had laid the foundation, he shewed his taste for learning and wish to encourage genius. This celebrated library at his death contained 200,000 volumes of the best and choicest books, and it was afterwards increased to 700,000 volumes. The method adopted for making this collection was the seizing of all the books that were brought by the Greeks or other foreigners into Egypt, and sending them to Ptolemy, who had them transcribed by persons employed for that purpose. The transcripts were then delivered to the proprietors, and the originals laid up in the library. Ptolemy Euergetes, for instance, borrowed of the Athenians the works of Sophocles, Euripides, and Æschylus, and only returned them the copies, which he caused to be transcribed in as beautiful a manner as possible; the originals he retained for his own library,presenting the Athenians with fifteen talents for the exchange, that is, with upwards of £3,000 sterling. As the Alexandrian academy was at first in the quarter of the city calledBruchion, the library was placed there, but when the number of books amounted to 400,000 volumes, another library within theSerapeumwas erected, by way of supplement to it, and on that account called the daughter of the former. The books lodged in the Serapeum increased to the number of 300,000, and these two made up the number of 700,000 volumes, of which the royal libraries of the Ptolemys were said to consist.
In the war which Julius Cæsar waged with the inhabitants of Alexandria, the library of Bruchion was accidentally, but unfortunately, burned; but the library in the Serapeum still remained. The whole was magnificently repaired by Cleopatra, who deposited there the 200,000 volumes, forming the library of the kings of Pergamus, with which she had been presented by Antony. These, and others added to them from time to time, rendered the new library of Alexandria more numerous and considerable than the former, and though it was plundered more than once during the revolutions which happened in the Roman empire, yet it was as frequently supplied with the same number of books, and continued for many ages to be of great fame anduse, until it was burnt by the Saracens, in the year 642 of the Christian æra.
There was a building adjoining to this library, called the Museum, for the accommodation of a college or society of learned men, who were supported there at the public expense, and where there were covered walks and seats where they might carry on disputations.
The next library of antiquity was that founded at Pergamus, by Eumenes, and considerably increased by the literary taste of his wealthy and learned successors, at whose court merit and virtue were always sure of finding an honorable patronage. This library which consisted of 200,000 volumes, was given by Antony to Cleopatra, as has been already mentioned.—Parchment was first invented and made use of at Pergamus to transcribe books upon, as Ptolemy had forbidden the exportation of Papyrus from Egypt, in order to prevent Eumenes from making a library as valuable and choice as that of Alexandria.
The first public library at Rome, and in the world, as Pliny observes, was erected by Asinius Pollio, in the Atrium of the Temple of Liberty on Mount Aventine. Augustus founded a Greek and Latin library in the Temple of Apollo on the Palatine Hill, and another in the name of his sister Octavia, adjoining to the Theatre of Marcellus.
Among the ancient libraries that of Lucullus is mentioned by Plutarch in terms of the highest praise. The number of volumes was immense, and they were written in elegant hands. The use he made of them was still more honorable to him than the possession of so much literary treasure. The library of Lucullus was open to all; the Greeks who were at Rome repaired with pleasure to his galleries and porticos, as to the retreat of the muses, and there spent whole days in conversation upon subjects of literature, delighted to retire to such a scene from other pursuits. Lucullus himself, who was a perfect master of the Greek language often joined and conferred with these learned men in their walks.
There were several other libraries at Rome, the chief of which was the Ulpian library, instituted by Trajan, which Dioclesian annexed as an ornament to his baths. One of the most elegant was that of Serenus Samonicus, preceptor of the Emperor Gordian. It is said to have contained not less than 60,000 volumes, and that the room in which they were deposited was paved with gilded marble. The walls were ornamented with glass and ivory; and the shelves, cases, presses, and desks, made of ebony and silver. There were libraries in the capital, in the Temple of Peace, and in the house of Tiberius. Many private persons had good libraries particularly in their country villas. The Romanlibraries were in general adorned with statues and pictures, particularly of ingenious and learned men.
Learning and the arts received a fatal blow by the destruction of the heathen temples, in the reign of Constantine. The devastations then committed, are depicted in the strongest and most lively colours by Mr. Gibbon, in his History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.
Many valuable libraries perished by the Barbarians of the north, who invaded Italy in the fourth and fifth centuries. By these rude hands perished the library of Perseus, king of Macedon, which Paulus Æmilius brought to Rome with its captive owner; as did also that noble library, just mentioned, established for the use of the public by Asinius Pollio, which was collected from the spoils of all the enemies he had subdued, and was much enriched by him at a great expense. The libraries of Cicero and Lucullus met with the same fate, and those of Julius Cæsar, of Augustus, Vespasian, and Trajan also perished, together with that of the Emperor Gordian.