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10 Mindblowing Facts about the Great Ancient Library of Alexandria

August 22, 2022

The Great Library of Alexandria is one of the ancient world’s most renowned and popular libraries. Yet despite its fame, very little is known about the Library of Alexandria. Scholars and historians disagree on its size, location, other structural details, and even its eventual destruction. Below are some mind-blowing facts about the Ancient Library of Alexandria, which will take you on a historical ride through ancient times in Egypt.

Who Built the Great Library of Alexandria?

Alexander the Great founded Alexandria in Egypt circa 331 BC. As he set out to conquer the world, Alexander the Great took geographers and historians to document different cultures and societies, from Macedonia and Greece to Central Asia and India.

Ptolemy I Soter, the successor of Alexander the Great, founded the Museum of Alexandria to collect documents from Persia, Greece, Assyria, Egypt, India, and many other nations. The Ancient Library of Alexandria was part of the museum, also known as Greek Mouseion, which was built as a shrine of the nine Muses – Clio, Calliope, Erato, Euterpe, Melpomeni, Ourania, Polymnia, Thalia, and Terpsichore. The shrine was modeled after the Lyceum of Aristotle in Athens.

The Museum of Alexandria was also a place of study with lush gardens, lecture areas, dining areas, decorated walkways, a zoo, and a library. It is believed that the Great Library of Alexandria once held more than half a million documents from various regions. It even housed around 100 scholars for full-time research, writing, lecturing, or translating and copying manuscripts.

What Inspired the Ancient Library of Alexandria?

It is believed that writing was invented in Mesopotamia around 3200 BC. At that time, there were no places to archive and store manuscripts and collections of texts. Even though the earliest clay tablets contained important information for practical purposes, they were erased and reused as building materials when their significance ended. This is how the earliest examples of writing were lost.

The first known collection of archived documents is rooted in the ancient Sumerian city of Uruk. Archaeologists have discovered around 4500 texts on various topics, such as mathematics and astronomy, from the site. This forms the earliest evidence that indicates humans’ archival behavior.

This led to the origins of many great ancient libraries, such as the Royal Library of Antioch and the Library of Ashurbanipal. It is believed that Alexander the Great was inspired by the ancient Library of Ashurbanipal and planned to build a grand library of his own in Alexandria, the then capital of Egypt.

Alexander the Great passed the responsibility to his Macedonian general Ptolemy I Soter, who built the Great Library of Alexandria in the city that was the center of Hellenistic civilization.

When Was the Library of Alexandria Built?

Ptolemy, I Soter built the Great Library of Alexandria circa 288 BC with the assistance and guidance of Demetrius of Phaleron. It was part of the Museum of Alexandria, where great thinkers, poets, scientists, and mathematicians of the time came to study and share their ideas.

The Library of Alexandria was open to scholars from all civilizations and cultures. It is believed that Aristarchus first stated that the earth revolves around the sun when he was at the Library of Alexandria. Later, Eratosthenes stood among scholars in the same spot and proved that the earth was spherical.

Many other historical events are also believed to have happened on the premises of the Ancient Library of Alexandria. From Hipparchus’ first atlas of the stars to the works of Callimachus and Euclid, the Library of Alexandria witnessed many studies and research that helped to shape the world as we know of today.

Was the Great Library of Alexandria the First Library Built Ever?

The Library of Alexandria was not the first of its kind to collect archived content. However, it was the largest of all libraries built in the ancient world. The first library built ever is believed to be the Library of Ashurbanipal, built in the 7th Century BC by the Assyrian ruler Ashurbanipal.

However, the Ancient Library of Alexandria has a special place in history because it contained half a million documents. Besides, it also enjoyed a great amount of monetary support from the ruling monarchy, which cannot be associated with any other ancient library. That is why the Pharaohs who ruled Egypt then were considered the most culturally enlightened rulers.

The Great Library of Alexandria even had a community of resident scholars and researchers involved in religious and academic pursuits. It is said that the scholars studied medicine, astronomy, mathematics, and literature at the Library of Alexandria.

Most major Greek texts, such as those of Hesiod and Homer, were edited and documented here. The sad thing is that the names of those earliest scholars have been lost to history after the demolition of the Library of Alexandria.

How Many Books Were in the Library of Alexandria?

The books at the Great Library of Alexandria were divided into various categories: rhetoric, poetry, comedy, tragedy, law, epic, history, natural science, medicine, mathematics, and miscellaneous. It is believed that the Ancient Library of Alexandria had anywhere between 400,000 to 700,000 books and scrolls.

The manuscripts and books for the Library of Alexandria were acquired by various rulers of Egypt over the course of time. Some were part of the purchases at Rhodes and Athens, two of the biggest markets in the ancient Mediterranean. The collection was so vast that another library branch was set up at the temple of the Greco-Egyptian deity, Serapis.

It is also said that government officials would go aboard a ship arriving at the Alexandria harbor to search for manuscripts and scrolls. Some of the books found were confiscated and included in the collection of the Great Library of Alexandria, while others were returned after the scholars at the library made a copy of them.

Did the Library of Alexandria Have a Librarian?

After the Museum of Alexandria was built, Ptolemy I Soter chose a priest to be the museum administrator. A separate librarian was also chosen to oversee the library’s manuscripts collection. Most of the books in the Ancient Library of Alexandria, managed by the librarian, were in Greek and Egyptian.

The librarian led the resident scholars as the chief curator and the head scholar. It is said that the librarian was also the main tutor for the royal family.

Historians say that the Great Library of Alexandria had the entire literary corpus of Ancient Greece. This included the works by Sophocles, Aristotle, and Euripides, among many others. Most of the books were about the culture and traditions of ancient Egypt.

After the death of Ptolemy I Soter, his son, Ptolemy II Philadelphus, established the Royal Library in the Museum of Alexandria to complement the shrine of the nine Muses. It is believed that the Greek writer Callimachus held the librarian’s responsibility at that time.

However, it is unknown whether the Royal Library was a part of the Library of Alexandria, a separate building, or an extension of the main manuscript library.

What Destroyed the Library of Alexandria?

It is unclear what destroyed the Ancient Library of Alexandria, and there are very few resources to discuss the fall of the epic structure. Historians even debate the period when the library was destroyed; some say it was destroyed in 48 AD, while others state that it was destroyed in 641 AD.

There is not much data to confirm whether the Great Library of Alexandria and the Museum of Alexandria were located within the city or near the Mediterranean Sea. There are no clear records on how many buildings were at the museum premises either. Nevertheless, it is widely accepted that a fire destroyed the Ancient Library of Alexandria.

It is said that the fire erupted when Julius Caesar ordered to burning of the Egyptian ships during the Alexandrian War between his forces and the Roman Senate, including Cleopatra VII, Arsinoe IV, and Ptolemy XIII. Although intended to destroy the enemy fleet, the fire set a great part of Alexandria ablaze.

Historians believe this fire demolished the Library of Alexandria either fully or partially. However, some archeologists say that the fire did not go out of the harbor and that the library could have been destroyed by others’ actions.

Who Destroyed the Library of Alexandria?

It is unclear when and how the Library of Alexandria was destroyed, but it is also not certain who destroyed it. Apart from the theory, which holds Julius Caesar responsible for the destruction of the Library of Alexandria, many other theories also say that it could have been destroyed in another way.

For instance, some Islamic scholars believe that the Great Library of Alexandria was burnt by order of caliph Umar from Mecca after his conquest of Alexandria. On the other hand, some say that Emperor Theodosius ordered the demolition of the Library of Alexandria, while a few researchers believe that it was destroyed during the revolt of Queen Zenobia of Palmyra when Aurelian recaptured Alexandria.

Some historians associate the destruction of the Library of Alexandria with the violent and volatile political conditions of Alexandria. They say the structure was destroyed when mass havoc and brawl arose between the Christians, Jews, and Pagans living in the city.

Even with the best efforts of historians and scholars, most of the details about the destruction of the Library of Alexandria remain a mystery. What is known, though, is that it was an incomparable center of learning during ancient times and was supported greatly by the ruling monarchy for centuries.

Why is the Library of Alexandria So Important?

The Great Library of Alexandria is surely a gem in mankind’s history. Scholars from all around the globe traveled to Alexandria to learn, research, share their ideas, and copy their books. The Library of Alexandria was a magnificent center for discussions on literature, philosophy, arts, and science – all under one roof.

One of the remarkable things about the Library of Alexandria is that it housed literature from many different regions, languages, and people. From Greek and Egyptian to Buddhist and Hebrew, the Great Library of Alexandria welcomed anything and everything that was related to poetry, tragedy, comedy, history, science, medicine, literature, mathematics, plays, and more.

The Library of Alexandria was filled with manuscripts and scrolls that contained knowledge of various civilizations and cultures. It remained a powerful structure that impressed and educated many scholars and thinkers of ancient times until the Library of Alexandria was ultimately destroyed.

Ever since the destruction of the Ancient Library of Alexandria, it has traumatized the thoughts of historians, poets, scholars, and travelers, who have lamented this great loss of literature and knowledge due to the barbaric actions of man.

What is Left of the Library of Alexandria Today?

There are no palaces of the Ptolemies, no lighthouse, and no Library of Alexandria today. There are remnants of the city on the land and under the sea. However, those are enough to witness how Alexandria thrived as a center of education and learning in ancient times.

The modern city in Egypt is built over the rubble of ancient Alexandria. Many excavated remains have been found near the coast, which reveal several architectural elements, colossal statues, and great blocks of marble or granite stones. All these prove the important role that the Library of Alexandria played in the cultural and civilization exchanges between Egypt and other parts of the Mediterranean, particularly the Greco-Roman world.

You can find the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in the city, which houses a few collections to remind you of the rich history of the Great Library of Alexandria today. Although it is not as massive as the original Library of Alexandria, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina is a truly amazing place to include in your Egypt tour itinerary.

The Ancient Library of Alexandria has totally vanished, which is a great loss. However, it still symbolizes the earliest aspirations of mankind to gain knowledge and stands as a testimony to global ecumenism and some of the greatest achievements we have ever known.