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THE LIBRARY OF CELSUS |
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Following the Marble Road you will arrive at The Celsus Library, one of the city's most magnificent
buildings and the finest example of its form in existence.
Following the criterion of the Roman architect Vitruvius, the library faces east to take advantage of the morning light. The front entrance is a two-storied façade with large windows over the doors to let in the light. The library had to be squeezed into the space available between older buildings. The columns in front were very cleverly designed, producing an optical illusion that the building front looks wider than it actually is.
Behind the front columns are four niches containing replicas of the original statues. Sophia represented Wisdom, Arete-Excellence, Eunoia-Goodwill and Episteme-Knowledge. While the front of the building is two-tiered, the interior was one large room with three levels of galleries or balconies. The building had a double wall to protect the books inside against humidity. The books, or papyrus scrolls, were kept in the many niches which lined the walls. Access to the niches was via the balconies. The Library was believed to have held about 12,000 books, a substantial collection for its time. Inscriptions on the front of the building indicate that the library was erected in 110 AD by the Consul Gaius (Tiberius) Julius Aquila as a mausoleum for his father Gaius (Tiberius) Julius Celsus Polemaenus Aquila (92-114 AD). A sum of 25,000 denarii was bequeathed for the purchase of books and the upkeep of the building.In 262 AD during the Gothic raids, the library was destroyed by fire, but the façade remained undamaged. It seems that the building was then abandoned and in the 4th Century the area in front of it was converted into a pool and fountain. The beautiful façade, would have been reflected in the pool, and the library served no function other than mere decoration. The façade collapsed during an earthquake around the 10th Century.
In the course of excavation, a reliefs commemorating a victory over the Parthians
was found in the pool. This relief or frieze, depicting the victory of Marcus Aurelius and Lucius
Verus, is now on diplay in a museum in Vienna. |
