http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Library_of_Alexandria
CB: Only the Egyptians didn't call it "Alexandria" , of course
Library of Alexandria
>From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For the modern library, see Bibliotheca Alexandrina.
The Great Library of Alexandria, O. Von Corven, 19th century
The Royal Library of Alexandria, or Ancient Library of Alexandria, in Alexandria, Egypt, was one of the largest and most significant libraries of the ancient world. It was dedicated to the Muses, the nine goddesses of the arts.[1] It flourished under the patronage of the Ptolemaic dynasty and functioned as a major center of scholarship from its construction in the 3rd century BC until the Roman conquest of Egypt in 30 BC. With collections of works, lecture halls, meeting rooms, and gardens, the library was part of a larger research institution called the Musaeum of Alexandria, where many of the most famous thinkers of the ancient world studied.
The library was created by Ptolemy I Soter, who was a Macedonian general and the successor of Alexander the Great.[2] As a symbol of the wealth and power of Egypt, it employed many scribes to borrow books from around the known world, copy them, and return them. Most of the books were kept as papyrus scrolls, and though it is unknown how many such scrolls were housed at any given time, their combined value was incalculable.
The library is famous for having been burned resulting in the loss of many scrolls and books, and has become a symbol of the destruction of cultural knowledge. A few sources differ on who is responsible for the destruction and when it occurred. Although there is a mythology of the burning of the Library at Alexandria, the library may have suffered several fires or acts of destruction over many years. Possible occasions for the partial or complete destruction of the Library of Alexandria include a fire set by Julius Caesar in 48 BC, an attack by Aurelian in the 270s AD, and the decree of Coptic Pope Theophilus in 391 AD.
After the main library was fully destroyed, ancient scholars used a "daughter library" in a temple known as the Serapeum, located in another part of the city. According to Socrates of Constantinople, Coptic Pope Theophilus destroyed the Serapeum in 391 AD.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexandria#History
On Mon, Apr 14, 2014 at 5:40 AM, Joseph Catron <jncatron at gmail.com> wrote:
> "A retired army general says he has filed a court case pushing for Egypt's
> historic Saint Catherine's Monastery to be demolished and its Greek monks
> deported on the grounds that they pose a threat to national security.
>
> "In May 2012, Ahmed Ragai Attiya obtained 71 administrative orders
> regarding the demolition of the monastery's multiple churches, monk cells,
> gardens and other places of interest on the grounds, which he claims were
> all built in 2006 and thus not historic, according to Ihab Ramzy, the
> monastery's lawyer ..."
>
> http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/98907.aspx
>
> --
> "Hige sceal þe heardra, heorte þe cenre, mod sceal þe mare, þe ure mægen
> lytlað."
> ___________________________________
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