Researching about ancient Library of Alexandria for the last few months…….. Re -Constructing a floor plan for ADD TO MY LIBRARY……
The ancient library of Alexandria has a notorious history related to its disappearance. It is said to have fallen victim to fire, earthquakes, floods and neglect.
The ancient library and Mouseion was begun in the 3rd Century BC by Ptolemy I and served the city and the school of Alexandria. It is believed to have contained anywhere from 200,000 to 700,000 scrolls. The library served well-known classical scholars such as Archimedes, Euclid, Heropholus, Erastothenes, Hypatia, Callimachus, Aristarchus, Heron and Theocritus, among others. It is not clear if the library was the largest in the world at the time however it was clearly considered the most important based upon its influential collection of both scholars and scrolls. The Septuagint, the earliest Greek translation of the Old Testament from the original Hebrew, is among the many important publications of the ancient library. The original appearance, size and extent of the building or buildings of the ancient library remain unknown. It is likely that the architectural style of the building or buildings was Greek and was probably located somewhere in the area of the new library.
The disappearance of the ancient library remains a mystery and no specific date can positively be attributed to the complete disappearance of the ancient institutions.
During the course of nearly 2000 years the ancient library has maintained mythological status as an institution of world culture. In 1974 the President of the University of Alexandria, Dr. Mohamed Lotfi Dowidar first suggested reviving the Alexandria Library. The Egyptian Ministry of Higher Education adopted this idea and later the General Organization of the Alexandria Library (GOAL) was developed to implement the project.
Archeological excavations were carried out on the site prior to construction to a depth of approximately 6 meters starting in 1994 by a team of international, mainly Polish, experts. No remnants of the existing library were specifically found. However, two precious Greco-Roman mosaic floors were uncovered, probably residential, and will be incorporated into the museum area of the new building. Additionally several sophisticated Roman design drainage channels were uncovered pointing to the existence of well-designed classical structures on the site.
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