A man has long started to think about preserving the accumulated knowledge, about their saving and reproduction. At first all knowledge was preserved on papyri, scrolls, tablets. But these information were scattered around the world, were not systematized and therefore were almost useless. The first truly famous library in the world is the temple in Nippur. From the legends of the Ancient World, we learn about libraries in Greece, Egypt and Rome. Today every country has its own State National Library, in each, even a small town, there must be a local library. As in ancient times, there are now great libraries of the world, which can rightly be proud of. In such national repositories is concentrated a huge number of unique books, newspapers and magazines. Regional libraries are almost as important to the state as national ones, although they are slightly inferior to the "main" in terms of the number of publications collected.
Famous libraries of the world
The National Library of the United States or the Library of Congress is one of the largest libraries in the world. At first, only the president, the vice-president and members of the Senate and the US Congress could use it. Hence the name went. It is located in Washington and is now a scientific library for the American Congress, research organizations, industrial companies, schools.
In Austria, not far from Vienna, there is one of the most beautiful libraries in the world - the Klosterneuburg State Library, which contains over 30,000 ancient books.
The library of the Duke of Augustus is a private collection of the very highly educated Duke Wolfenbuttel, Augustus the Younger, who collected books from childhood. Agents from all over the world brought him manuscripts, which he put into a stable for a stable. During his life the duke collected so many books and manuscripts that this assembly was called "the eighth wonder of the world."
Strahov Monastery in Prague is an ancient monument of Czech architecture. In it already more than 800 years there is a known storehouse of books. The oldest publications that can be found here date back to the XII century. The walls of the rooms, where the books are stored, are covered with frescoes. The library burned several times, was looted, but, nevertheless, many valuable editions managed to be preserved. Now there are more than 130,000 books, 1500 prints of the first printers, 2500 manuscripts.
Unusual libraries of the world
Today, in the age of high technology and the Internet, many people, however, continue to go to libraries. For them, new and new buildings are being built, some of which are striking in their beauty and unusual architecture:
- library resort, The Library Resort Hotel opened recently in Thailand. Right next to the pool there is an excellent library. It is possible, after leaving the pool, to settle right there with a book in hand and have a great time;
- a bookshelf, a library in Kansas, its facade is the eight-meter roots of the book. A total of 22 such books with different covers;
- a shell library is being built in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan. This form is chosen to ensure that sunlight as much as possible illuminate the room from the inside;
- the endless library in Stockholm consists of a wall with books along which people walk around the galleries and choose the books they like. To enhance the effect of infinity, mirrors are installed from both sides;
- the modern Alexandrian library, built on the site of the oldest book depository, is striking. A seven-storey building in the form of the sun rises from the pool with water. The architect, apparently, wanted to show the sunrise of the Sun of Knowledge.
In the world there is a huge number of libraries, and, regardless of the level of civilization, there are always people who do not think their life without this book.