Library

History What it was

Roman books were scrolls: long strips of papyrus or parchment rolled around a stick. Wealthy Romans collected private libraries, and from the late 1st century BC public libraries were built in Rome. Emperors added more, often in pairs, one for Greek books and one for Latin. The Forum of Trajan had twin libraries beside Trajan's Column, and some large public baths had libraries too.

History How it worked

Scrolls were kept in wooden cupboards set into niches in the walls. Readers asked library staff for the scrolls they wanted and read them in the hall or nearby colonnades. Every copy was written out by hand, often by trained enslaved scribes, so books were valuable.

History Places you can still see

The Library of Celsus at Ephesus, in modern Turkey, was dedicated around AD 110 in memory of a Roman governor, Celsus. Its two-story marble front has been rebuilt and is one of the most photographed Roman buildings in the world.

At Herculaneum, a villa buried by Mount Vesuvius in AD 79 held a library of scrolls that were turned to charcoal by the heat. Today scientists are using scanning and computer techniques to read some of them without unrolling them.

Think about it

1. How would it change things if every book had to be copied by hand?
2. Who could use a public library in Rome? Who can use yours?
3. Why might emperors build libraries?

Key words

Scroll

A long rolled-up sheet used as a book.

Papyrus

A paper-like material made from a river plant.

Scribe

Someone who copies texts by hand.