eBook - PDF
Inside Roman Libraries
Book Collections and Their Management in Antiquity
- 348 pages
- English
- PDF
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - PDF
About this book
Libraries of the ancient world have long held a place in the public imagination. Even in antiquity, the library at Alexandria was nearly legendary. Until now there has been relatively little research to discover what was inside these libraries, how the collections came into being and evolved, and who selected and maintained the holdings. In this engaging and meticulously researched study, George W. Houston examines a dozen specific book collections of Roman date in the first comprehensive attempt to answer these questions.
Through a careful analysis of the contents of the collections, Houston reveals the personalities and interests of their owners, shows how manuscripts were acquired, organized, and managed, and identifies the various purposes that libraries served. He considers the life expectancy of manuscripts, the sizes of libraries, and dangers to books, as well as the physical objects within libraries from scribal equipment to works of art. The result is a clearer, more specific, and more detailed picture of ancient book collections and the elements of Roman libraries than has previously been possible.
Through a careful analysis of the contents of the collections, Houston reveals the personalities and interests of their owners, shows how manuscripts were acquired, organized, and managed, and identifies the various purposes that libraries served. He considers the life expectancy of manuscripts, the sizes of libraries, and dangers to books, as well as the physical objects within libraries from scribal equipment to works of art. The result is a clearer, more specific, and more detailed picture of ancient book collections and the elements of Roman libraries than has previously been possible.
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Please note we cannot support devices running on iOS 13 and Android 7 or earlier. Learn more about using the app.
Yes, you can access Inside Roman Libraries by George W. Houston in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in History & Ancient History. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.
Information
Table of contents
- Cover
- Contents
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- 1. Assembling a Collection
- 2. Lists of Books Preserved on Papyrus
- 3. The Villa of the Papyri at Herculaneum
- 4. The Book Collections of Oxyrhynchus
- 5. Spaces, Storage, Equipment, and Art
- 6. Personnel and Their Activities
- Conclusion
- Appendix 1. Lists of Books on Papyrus: Greek Texts, English Translations, and Commentary
- Appendix 2. Checklist of Books in the Collection of the Villa of the Papyri
- Appendix 3. Catalog of Manuscripts in the Breccia + GH3 Find
- Bibliography
- Index of Ancient Sources
- General Index