The Bibliotheca Ulpia ("Ulpian Library") was a Roman library founded by the Emperor Trajan in AD 114 in his forum, the Forum of Trajan, located in ancient

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. It was considered one of the most prominent and famous libraries of antiquity and became the major library in the Western World upon the

destruction of the Library of Alexandria The Great Library of Alexandria in Alexandria, Egypt, was one of the largest and most significant libraries of the ancient world. The Library was part of a larger research institution called the Mouseion, which was dedicated to the Muses, ...

in the 3rd century. It was the only Roman library to survive until the

Fall of Rome The fall of the Western Roman Empire (also called the fall of the Roman Empire or the fall of Rome) was the loss of central political control in the Western Roman Empire, a process in which the Empire failed to enforce its rule, and its v ...

in the mid-fifth century.

History

In 112 AD, the Emperor Trajan commissioned a library to be built in his Forum due north of the

Roman Forum The Roman Forum, also known by its Latin name Forum Romanum ( it, Foro Romano), is a rectangular forum ( plaza) surrounded by the ruins of several important ancient government buildings at the center of the city of Rome. Citizens of the ancie ...

, the heart of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...

. Construction was completed in 114 AD. Upon its completion, the Ulpian Library was the premier library and scholarly center of Rome. “This library was also the Public Record Office of Rome” with over 20,000 scrolls containing records concerning the city’s population. The library was also equipped with presses for storage of both scrolls and books storage. During excavation, traces of these presses were found. The collection of books and scrolls not pertaining public records is thought to have been based on the private library of Epaphrodites of Cheronea and is thought to have contained over 30,000 books and scrolls. Early in the 4th century, the contents of the Ulpian Library were moved to the

Baths of Diocletian , alternate_name = it, Terme di Diocleziano , image = Baths of Diocletian-Antmoose1.jpg , caption = Baths of Diocletian, with the basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri built in the remains of the baths. , map_dot_ ...

, possibly due to repairs as the contents were returned at a later date as records show that in 455 AD a bust of Didonius Appollinarius was ordered there by the

Emperor Avitus Eparchius Avitus (c. 390 – 457) was Roman emperor of the West from July 455 to October 456. He was a senator of Gallic extraction and a high-ranking officer both in the civil and military administration, as well as Bishop of Piacenza. He ...

Library layout

The Ulpian Library continued in the tradition of Roman imperial libraries with Latin and Greek collections housed separately. In this library, they faced one another across a small colonnaded courtyard that enclosed the

Column of Trajan Trajan's Column ( it, Colonna Traiana, la, Columna Traiani) is a Roman triumphal column in Rome, Italy, that commemorates Roman emperor Trajan's victory in the Dacian Wars. It was probably constructed under the supervision of the architect Apo ...

. The library was a two level structure with high vaulted ceilings to take advantage of the natural lighting. The interior walls were divided into bays by columns "set opposite pilasters that framed the niches which held the books and scrolls. There were three steps between the columns that enabled "access to a walkway in front of the bookcases." At the other end of the hall were recesses for a statue on each level, presumably of Trajan and possibly of Minerva. The niches (seven total on each wall) containing recessed wooden bookcases located in both walls running the length of the library along with four others running across the back wall stored the scrolls. Estimates on the amount of scrolls held are "approximately ten thousand" for both Latin and Greek libraries. "In addition, there were archival materials, such as praetorian edicts and senatorial decrees, as well as Caesar's autobiography and Trajan's commentaries on the Dacian Wars, of which now only a few words survive." The space itself was designed to be aesthetically pleasing with desks (''plutei)'' and the books out of sight on shelves and intending for reading, but was not designed with the growth of the collection in mind.

Reconstruction

There are reconstructions both digital and physical that show the external and internal view of the library. The digital reconstruction shows the view from inside the west (Greek) library, through what would have been bronze screens into the portico, where the base of the Column of Trajan can be seen. The library itself faces east, as

Vitruvius Vitruvius (; c. 80–70 BC – after c. 15 BC) was a Roman architect and engineer during the 1st century BC, known for his multi-volume work entitled '' De architectura''. He originated the idea that all buildings should have three attribut ...

recommends for libraries, the screens restricting access when the library was not in use and, with the high vaulted ceiling, taking advantage of the morning light. Portions of the floor and the podium of one of the walls survive allowed for the digital reconstruction of the library interior. Bibliotheca Ulpia 01.jpg Bibliotheca Ulpia 02.jpg Bibliotheca Ulpia 03.jpg Bibliotheca Ulpia 04.jpg

References

External links

* * * * http://uulzii.com/search?q=ulpian+library {{Authority control Ancient libraries Ancient Roman buildings and structures in Rome Libraries in Rome 110s BC establishments Trajan's Forum