Libraries are one of the most remarkable human inventions: they hold within their walls a wealth of knowledge, history, and information. These spaces serve as the guardians of countless books, manuscripts, and artifacts that represent our collective cultural heritage and they offer a wealth of resources to anyone who wishes to learn, explore, or escape into the pages of a good book. Here are some of the most magnificent libraries in the world!
1. Library of Alexandria
The great library of Alexandria in Egypt was built in 242 BC and completed in 222 BC during the reign of Ptolemy II. The library was one of the largest and most significant libraries of the ancient world. The library was part of a larger research institution called the Moseion, which was dedicated to the Muses, the nine goddesses of art. It was not easy to determine the size of the library's collection size, but among other things, there were papyrus scrolls, accidentally destroyed by Julius Caesar during his civil war in 48 BC.
As a research institution, the Library filled its stacks with new works in mathematics, astronomy, physics, natural sciences, and other subjects. The library dwindled during the Roman period from a lack of funds and support. Pluto, Aristotle, Sotades, Aeschylus, Euripides, and Theophrastus were among the scholars who made use of the Library of Alexandria.
2. Epos Ship Library
Epos Ship Library is a floating library that operated in the counties of Hordaland, Sign Og Fjordane, and More Og Romsdal in Norway. The operations and services commenced in 1959 and were launched in the year 1963. The Library has thousands of collections in its domain and has the ability to visit tiny places in the three countries twice a year. A total of 53,300 books were said to be available for loan in the year 2005 for the services. The Epos Ship Library was rendered for 126 days.
3. Tianjin Binhai Library
Tianjin Binhai Library is located in China and is fondly called “The Evil Eye”, because the bookshelves which are built into the ceiling are shaped like an eye. The Library is a cultural center, and it is one of the five central attractions in China. It was established in October 2017 with a collection of 1.2 million books. Its total space is 33,700 square meters. The Tianjin Library can accommodate approximately over 5000 people in a day. It also contains mainly a lounge area, reading rooms, computer rooms, meeting rooms, and offices. Despite the beautiful and unique architectural design, it took only three years to put up this magnificent edifice.
4. Al-Qarawlyyin Library
Al-Qarawlyyin Library is located in Morocco, and it is the oldest Library in the world. It was built in 859 by Fatima Al-Fihri, the daughter of a wealthy merchant living in Fez. It contains mainly scholarly collections such as a 9th-century historical text, Muquddimah of Ibn Khadun, and the oldest-known collection of accounts of Prophet Muhammad's life and writings. For centuries historians and scholars have traveled across the world to peruse the library”s shelves. Al-Qarawlyyin Library suffered some neglect, which led to cracks in the walls and the loss of some of their books, but it was rebuilt and restored in 2012 with modern collections and facilities.
5. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Library
This Library is the newest and most amazing library in the Arab world, and it's located in the Al-Jaddaf area of Dubai. It is the most modern library in the world, and it features a very unique design. Building started in February 2016 and the library opened for use in June 2022. It is a cultural center in the Arab World that exemplifies its purpose through architecture as an “open book resting on the holder”.
Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Library has a space of 54,000 square meters, and has over a million print and digital books as well as over 6 million research articles. An entire floor of the library is dedicated to rare and antique items including items dating as far back as the 13th century.
6. Vatican Apostolic Library
The Vatican Apostolic Library is also known as the Vatican Library. Located in Vatican City and established in 1475 founded by Pope Sixtus IV (1471 – 1484), It was the Library of the Holy See, though not the oldest Library.
However, Vatican Library has the most significant collections of historical texts with over 2 million collections, codices, and incunabula. It is mostly a research Library for scholars in history, law, philosophy, science, and theology. One striking service rendered by the Vatican library is the photocopying of pages from books published between 1801 and 1990 can either be requested in person or by mail. The library started digitizing its collection in march 2014.
7. National Library of Greece
The National Library of Greece was established in the year 1832 by Loannis Kapodistrias with a mission to locate, collect, organize, describe, and preserve the artifacts of Greece culture over time. The library was located in Athens, Greece. It was basically a custodian of the Greek literary heritage, bridging the past, the present, and the future. It has a history barn over two centuries from the 9th to the 19th centuries. The Library gradually migrated from traditional to digital space with new facilities.
The National Library of Greece is among the first libraries to have an all-inclusive library services. It has created a public section that offers a separate collection for children, teenagers, and adults combined with a wide range of educational and interactive programs. Their special collections, including several outstanding treasures of Greece’s printed heritage, were accompanied on their arrival to the library by Greek police, according to procedures that demanded the protection and safe delivery of their national relics.
Conclusively Libraries are established to provide access to information, and to aid civilization and development. The acquisition, processing, dissemination, storage, and preservation of information resources are of paramount importance to any society. Most Countries of the world know the importance of this, so they're willing to spend huge amounts to erect magnificent libraries, to preserve culture and learning for future generations.
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