When was alexandria library destroyed

The final blow came in CE when Alexandria came under Muslim rule. Even then, it is said that it took six months for all the materials to burn.

Practically nothing of the library remains today. Modern Alexandria is a bustling metropolis and has maintained consistent occupation over the last 2, years. However, there is no dispute that the destruction of the Library of Alexandria significantly damaged our understanding of ancient civilizations. Jordan N. Blue Springs North Branch. Those historical sources do not talk about a concerted effort to burn old scrolls, or there would not have been anything left for the caliph to burn.

An interesting question is whether those scrolls would have been ancient Egyptian works or more recent Greco-Roman works donated by Marc Antony. Amazing what you can learn from generations of accumulated knowledge that has been crammed into the smallest of spaces.

Lets me know that. Tomorrow starts a new day for the rest of our lives. Read Similar Blogs: History. Was this page helpful? Yes No. The Ptolemies were a dynasty of Pharaohs who ruled Egypt for nearly years. The first Ptolemy was a general under Alexander the Great.

They financially supported the library and its scholars and earned a reputation in the ancient world for being culturally enlightened rulers. The Library of Alexandria contained both a library and a museum.

The museum was made of a community of scholars who were involved in academic and religious pursuits. The museum was named for the Muses, the Greek goddesses of artistry and scholarship. Its resident scholars studied mathematics, medicine, astronomy, and literature. They are famous for having edited most major Greek texts, including those of Homer and Hesiod. It is also believed that the library scholars served as teachers for privileged members of the community. It is not known how many members the museum had.

Their names have been lost to history. The librarian was the head scholar, head scholar, and tutor to the royal family. The librarians and the Ptolemies alike went to great lengths to obtain as many books as possible. Scholars were sent to other major cities such as Athens and Rhodes, to buy books.

All ships that docked in the harbor were searched, and the books were taken and copied. The copies not the originals were returned to the owners. Books known to have been acquired this way include the tragedies of Sophocles, Aeschylus, and Euripides. He invited scholars to live and study in Alexandria at his expense. The library grew as they contributed their own manuscripts, but the rulers of Alexandria still wanted a copy of every book in the world. Luckily, Alexandria was a hub for ships traveling through the Mediterranean.

Ptolemy III instituted a policy requiring any ship that docked in Alexandria to turn over its books for copying. Hired book hunters also scoured the Mediterranean in search of new texts, and the rulers of Alexandria attempted to quash rivals by ending all exports of the Egyptian papyrus used to make scrolls.

These efforts brought hundreds of thousands of books to Alexandria. As the library grew, it became possible to find information on more subjects than ever before, but also much more difficult to find information on any specific subject. They made some astounding discoveries. For about years after its founding in BCE, the library thrived.