Literature and Libraries in Ancient Rome

Margot Hanson

LIS 612, Knuth

12 December 2006

1
Historical Background

In order to discuss the libraries of ancient Rome, we first need to take a brief look

at the history of this time period. There are three main periods of the history of Rome: the

Roman Republic, Roman Empire, and early Christianity. By tradition, Rome was

founded in 753 BCE by Romulus, who also became the first king. There were seven

kings of Rome before the founding of the Roman Republic in 505 BCE. The Roman

Republic became the Roman Empire with Augustus as the first Emperor in 30 BCE.

Christianity was officially recognized by Emperor Constantine in 313 CE with the Edict

of Milan. The Edict gave Christians freedom of worship.

Throughout Roman history, culture and conquest went hand in hand. Roman

culture was largely inherited from the Greek culture, and literary and library efforts were

modeled on the Greek forms. Military success led to economic prosperity, which lead to

an increase in cultural flowering. Many of the literary and library-related advanced of

Rome were from the conquest and “harvesting” of cultural and literary artifacts from the

dominated culture. The Latin alphabet is one example of this cultural syncretism. The

Latin alphabet which we know and love (and use) today is adapted from the Etruscan

alphabet, which in turn was adapted from Greek.

The Roman Republic was characterized by expansion, expansion and more

expansion, which ultimately led to its shift to an Empire. The cultures in the areas of

growth were absorbed into the overall Republic, and many people moved to the urban

center in the city of Rome itself for economic reasons. Slaves from the conquered areas

also became a large part of the makeup of the Roman population, and each culture

2
contributed a bit of their own flavor to the amalgamation of culture. One could think of

the Roman Republic as a precursor to our American "melting pot" concept.

In this way, the influence of Greek culture had a profound impact on Roman

literary traditions. Literature, literacy, education and philosophy were important features

of Greek culture, and the Roman elites strove to emulate these aspects of Greek life.

Literacy and culture (luxuries of a life of leisure) were restricted to the upper classes.

"Educated Greeks began working as teachers in the early 3rd century, and Rome's first

elementary school opened in 234. By the mid- to late 2nd century most upper-class

Romans knew some Greek; literacy in Latin existed among the elite, and, to a lesser

degree, among skilled craftsmen."1

The earliest known writings in Latin are inscriptions from the 6th century BCE.

"The 'publication' of the civil law by Cn. Flavius in 303 (304) shows that writing, though

still limited to relatively small numbers of citizens, had gained a new importance."2 Civil

law had traditionally been passed on orally, but the publication of the law was evidence

that enough of the population could read to warrant a published version.

Early Literary Scene

The early Latin literature was mostly made up of translations and adaptations of

Greek literature, which already had a long and illustrious tradition. The first works of

Latin literature entered the historical record in 240 BCE, at a festival that year. A man by

the name of Livius Andronicus presented Latin renditions of a Greek comedy and a

Greek tragedy. Livius was Greek by birth, and was from the city of Tarentum in southern

Italy, which was a Greek cultural enclave. He was brought to Rome as a prisoner of war

where "he became a slave in the household of the Livii."3 After Livius was freed, he was

3
quite a prolific contributor to the beginning of Latin literary history. According to

references in other Latin works (none of his works are extant), Livius translated Homer's

Odyssey, at least eight Greek tragedies, and a few Greek comedies. "Before Livius, Latin

poetry consisted of hymns and drinking songs."4 Livius' contributions are even mentioned

by the Roman lyric poet Horace, who wrote at the end of the first century BCE that "his

'whipful' schoolmaster made him learn some Livius by heart."5 During his time, private

libraries were made up from spoils of war from the Hellenic world and elsewhere, and

Greek literature was very popular. The booktrade in Rome had not taken off yet. Livius

may have had access to the private library of the upper-class household where he was a

slave, which would have made it possible for him to translate those works.

The next big name in the Roman literary scene was Plautus. Plautus also

specialized in translating and adapting works from Greek into Latin. Plautus focused on

adapting Greek comedies from the school called New Greek Comedy (although they're

quite old today!). New Greek Comedy was a sensational hit on the stages of Athens and

in other parts of the Hellenic world from about 250 to 350 BCE. He is the first Latin

author whose works have survived, so we know a bit more about him than Livius. He

adapted at least fifty comedies from Greek to Latin, twenty of which are extant. Although

he was not a native speaker of either Latin or Greek (he was from Sarsina, Umbria), he

learned both languages well enough to not only translate, but even improve upon others'

literary and dramatic efforts. Cultural events in Rome were not quite so highbrow as in

the Greek world, and theater was in competition for an audience with other spectacles

such as boxing matches, tightrope walking, etc. In order to get an audience, the plays had

to grab the attention of the people. And, in order to sell his scripts to the theater managers

4
and make a living, Plautus had to make his scripts very interesting indeed. His

adaptations included much more "vigorous and playful" dialogue and other literary

charms than the Greek scripts upon which they were based.6

Private Libraries

There were many private libraries in the wealthy homes of Romans, and it was a

source of pride and prestige to have an impressive library. Private book collecting

became something of an art, and for scholars it was essential to have a considerable

personal library which could be used as the basis for literary efforts. For example, Cicero

called his library the soul of his house, and requested that his friends bequeath their

libraries to him upon death.

Some of the private libraries were just for show, to impress visitors and prove that

the owner was a cultured and learned man. In the first century CE, Seneca (philosopher,

dramatist, and tutor of Nero) wrote about this phenomenon with scorn:

Among cold baths and hot baths a library is also is equipped as a necessary ornament of a
great house...who seeks to have book-cases of citrus-wood and ivory, who collects the
works of unknown or discredited authors and sits yawning in the midst of so many
thousand books, who gets the most of his pleasure from the outsides of volumes and their
titles.7
Seneca perhaps thought that these collectors were hoarding books while other scholarly

persons could derive some use from them. This brings up the question of who deserves to

have books, and access to them, and who does not? A modern parallel might be having a

baby grand piano in your home without knowing how to play, but just to include it as a

beautiful piece of furniture. Does a person not deserve to have a piano although they

5
cannot play it? Is the piano itself a thing of beauty to be looked at, or is it a musical

instrument to make beautiful music with?

In fact, this type of comparison was made by Ausonius:

That thou with Books thy Library hast fill'd,

who wrote an essay called "Ignorant Book Collector." Here's a taste of his opinion:

For what expectation do you base upon your books that you are always unrolling them
and rolling them up, gluing them, trimming them, smearing them with saffron and oil of
cedar, putting slip covers on them, and fitting them with knobs, just as if you were going
to derive some profit for them?9
Lucian points out a difference in perspective between collectors and scholars. The

collectors, in Lucian's view, think of the books as objects of adoration and awe. Lucian

believes the books should be used, read, and learned from. The tension between books as

artifacts versus books as containers of information still plays out today in the decisions

modern preservationists must make between saving the book as a relic or the past or

saving the information contained within the book.

The private library at the Villa of the Papyri at Herculaneum is a very impressive

example of private libraries of the Roman upper-classes, and it has a very exciting

archeological recent history. It is unclear whether it was of a scholarly variety or just for

show, but we do know that it was a monumental library from the remains excavated

there. Unlike other Roman libraries, we are able to surmise the extent of the library

because of the preserved papyrus remains due to the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 CE.

Before the decimation of the town, Herculaneum "functioned in ancient times as a resort

6
town between Naples and Pompeii."10 Wealthy residents of Rome, Naples and other

cities escaped the summer heat in Herculaneum near the sea. The town was covered with

65 feet of volcanic ash in August of 79 CE, which buried it out of sight and left it mostly

forgotten for centuries.

In 1709 workers were digging a well for a monastery located on top of the

volcanic rock and discovered an ancient villa beneath, with treasures of marble and

bronze. Excavations took place over the next few decades to unearth more treasures, and

in 1752 stacks of ancient papyri were discovered. Since the excavators were looking for

treasures, they didn't value the papyri, which looked like black lumps of charcoal after

the devastation of the volcanic blast. It took a little while for the value of the classic texts

to be fully realized, and experts came in to lend a hand in the tedious process of unrolling

and deciphering the damaged papyri.

The makeup of the collection is somewhat known, although the initial location of

the papyri was not recorded. The papyri were found in three locations: mainly the library,

also a reading room, and in a doorway. The bulk of the collection is in Greek, although

there are a few Latin texts as well. There were more than 1,700 rolls of papyrus

excavated from the site so far, and there is speculation that a separate area for Latin texts

will be found in the future. The collection seems to be made up of Epicurean texts, both

written by Epicurus himself and also by other, later Epicurean philosophers. The

discovered texts had been copied between 3rd century BCE and early first century CE.11

There were several other noteworthy private libraries in Rome which we know of

through mentions in personal correspondence or other writing. The first one we know of

was the library of Paulus Aemilius, who was a Roman general and scholar. Aemilius

7
defeated King Perseus of Macedonia in 168 BCE, and claimed the king's library for

himself.12 The trend of taking the conquered people's libraries as spoils of war became

common practice, and many other famous private libraries in Rome used this method of

acquisition. One of the great collections of war booty was the personal library of

Aristotle, which was won by Sulla in 86 BCE when he conquered Athens.13 The

collection had been inherited by a family in the Pergamene Empire "who had kept it

stored underground to save it from being confiscated by the king's agents."14 He sent the

entire collection back to his own home, and began the process of repairing the scrolls,

which had been damaged by their years underground. A Greek slave/librarian, Tyrannio,

supervised the conservation and organization of the collection.

From the personal correspondence of Cicero and Atticus, we know that the use of

highly trained slaves for library work was common at this time.15 These slave library

workers were responsible for gluing damaged rolls, gluing together papyrus pieces to be

used for copying, labeling rolls with parchment pieces bearing the author's name, and the

head librarians, like Tyrannio, were in charge of the maintenance and organization of the

collection. Like the collections themselves, scholars shared their skilled workers to assist

each other in their library needs. From the letters of Cicero, we have a glimpse into this

arrangement: "You will see Tyrannio's marvelous library arrangement of my

books...Could you send me a couple of your library people whom Tyrannio could use for

gluing and other jobs?"16

We also know from Cicero's letter to the Roman army commander Publius

Sulpicius in the autumn of 46 BCE that sometimes the slave library workers tried not

only to liberate themselves, but some of their masters' books as well. Perhaps they felt it

8
was just compensation for their dedicated work. Cicero wrote to Sulpicius requesting that

he keep an eye out for Cicero's slave Dionysius, who stole many of Cicero's books from

his "very valuable library" and "absconded."17

Another famous private library made up from war plunder was that of Lucius

Licinius Lucullus.18 He had fought earlier under Sulla,19 and continued to lead the Roman

cause of expansion during an eight-year campaign in Asia Minor. When he was removed

from his post in 66 BCE,20 he turned to a more refined pastime and cultivated the library

from the booty he had claimed during his conquests. He had several homes, both within

the city of Rome as well as a few country villas in outlying areas, and he installed

libraries in each of them. The libraries included collection rooms, reading rooms, and

areas for gathering and discussion. He opened his libraries to his friends, members of his

economic class, and also to Greek literati living in Rome. The collections of Lucullus

were a popular destination for Greeks thirsty for literature in their own language.

Public Libraries

Lucullus' library was certainly private, although he opened it to certain members

of the community. At the time, the only public collections were in temples and

government archives.21 Lucullus' method of making his collection available to others was

a precursor to the first public libraries in Rome. It was the vision of Julius Caesar "to

build for public use a library of Greek books and one of Latin books, both as big as

possible"22 in Rome to rival that of Alexandria. To that end, "he appointed Terentius

Varro (116-27 BCE), a noted scholar and book collector, to gather together copies of the

best-known literature for a Roman public library."23 The plan was cut short by Caesar's

assassination in 44 BCE, but the dream did not die. The concept was revived and

9
completed by a supporter of Caesar, Gaius Asinius Pollio. Pollio had gained a fortune

through his conquest of Dalmatia in 39 BCE, and he used his money and influence to

gather together existing collections and combine them to make the first public library in

Rome, which opened for public use around 37 BCE.

There are no remains of this first Roman public library, so we only know of its

existence through mentions in writings of the time. It was centrally located just off the

Forum, in the Temple of Liberty on the Aventine Hill, where public archives had

previously been stored. There were two sections, one for Greek works and one for Latin.

This method of arrangement with linguistic segregation, which was part of Caesar's

vision, became common in Roman libraries, since so much of the literary heritage of

Rome was based on the rich history of Greek traditions.

The subsequent era following the building of the first public library, known as

Pax Romana, was characterized by peace and prosperity. Generally, times of economic

growth and military calm can lead to a flowering in social and intellectual life, and this

period definitely encompassed those goals. Lead by the first emperor of the Roman

Empire, Augustus (63 BCE-14 CE), neglected public buildings which already existed

were restored and new buildings were erected. Among these were new public libraries.

When Augustus became the first emperor at the end of the Roman civil wars in 30 CE, he

began the tradition of emperors being responsible for the task of building libraries in

Rome.

Augustus founded two libraries, one of which still exists to some degree in the

form of ancient ruins. The second Roman public library was the Library of the Temple of

Apollo and was also referred to as the Palatine Library.24 It was begun in 36 BCE and

10
completed in 28 BCE, and the first librarian was Pompeius Macer.25 The library adjoined

the temple to Apollo that Augustus ordered to be built, and was in the style of Pollio's

library, with two separate language collections, one chamber for Greek and one for Latin.

The library was almost like two twin libraries side by side. Both of the collections were

stored in niches in the walls, into which were fitted wooden bookcases lined with shelves.

The scrolls were laid on the shelves with the tags facing the library patron for easy

access.26

The second Augustan library is known as the Octavian Library. It was built in the

Porticus Octaviae structure, which Augustus had built in honor of his sister, Octavia, and

in memory of her son, Marcellus, who died in 23 BCE. The first librarian for this

collection was Caius Melissus. There are no remains for this building, so we know of it

only through the words and descriptions of others.

Following Augustus' lead, future emperors also built libraries. The Ulpian

Library, founded by Emperor Trajan, was the last of these imperial public libraries to be

built. The remains of this building are quite extensive, so we know much more about it

than other libraries. It was built as part of the forum Trajan dedicated in 112 CE, which

sits on Capitoline Hill. The library shelves were tucked into the walls of the enormous

reading room, which had a highly ornate vaulted ceiling and well-lit reading room in the

center of the floor. Like other Roman libraries, the collection was divided into two

language groups. The building is lavish in all of its details, and typifies a main difference

between Greek and Roman libraries: stacks for storage and access, versus handsome,

spacious work spaces in which to read and discuss the books.27

11
Bath Libraries

A Roman library location which we find slightly horrifying today from the

perspective of preservation is in public baths. Visiting public baths was a very popular

pastime for the Romans, and some facilities were so elaborate as to include warm rooms,

hot rooms, sweat rooms, cold plunges, and massage chambers. They also served as

recreational and cultural centers, surrounded by gardens, playing courts, meeting rooms,

and sometimes even libraries.28 A couple of examples include the Baths of Trajan and the

Baths of Caracella. The Baths of Trajan were completed in 109 CE. The library at this

location included the usual two chambers for the bilingual collection. The Baths of

Caracella still have standing remains and are a popular tourist attraction today.

Construction began in 212 CE and took over a decade to complete. Judging from the

remains, it seems likely that bronze screens were used to close the library during off-

hours. Perhaps we could take a hint from the Roman librarians and take the libraries to

the people! Libraries in the shopping malls! Libraries at the bus stops!

Library Staff

In Rome, library directors, or procurators, were known as procurator

bibliothecarum, and this position was a stepping-stone to higher political positions. It was

often filled by a skilled and educated Roman, and sometimes in the earlier years by a

freedman. Each library department was headed by a bibliothecarius "librarian." The

libraries were staffed by slaves and freedmen, and staff were known as a bibliotheca, "of

the library staff."29 This staff didn't include a circulation desk, however, because books

were all for Library Use Only (unless the patron was a very influential member of

society).

12
 Like bookshops and publishers, libraries in Rome relied on staff to make copies of

books as a method of acquisition. Slaves (usually Greek) were used for this job, and were

specially trained. In the publishing world copyists were "much sought after and

expensive."30 Although they were slaves, the copyists were paid a minimal fee for their

labor, and Emperor Diocletian set a minimum wage for copy work. There are inevitable

problems with errors in copy work, so publishers began to employ special copyeditors to

catch mistakes before they were released onto the public. This problem was compounded

by translation issues, as there was much written in Greek and Latin and copying to be

done in both languages.

Early Christian Libraries: Book forms and Censorship

In 313 CE, Christianity was officially recognized by Emperor Constantine in the

Edict of Milan. The Edict pronounced that Christians were to be granted "free and

unrestricted opportunity of religious worship." This allowance contributed to the spread

of Christianity and the influence of Christian literature and libraries. The rise of

Christianity in the Roman Empire contributed to library and book development in several

ways. There was a shift in book form from the papyrus roll to the vellum codex, libraries

starting popping up all over the place in monasteries, and a new literature emerged. It

also provided another outlet for censorship and the destruction of offensive materials.

Censorship and bookburning had already been in place under the emperors, namely

Augustus and Tiberius, who wanted no critical materials circulated.

The shift in book form took place slowly and evolved through different phases.

"In the first four centuries A.D., papyrus was the most widely used writing material."31

Papyrus was from Egypt, and there was an imperial monopoly on its production. Vellum

13
and parchment could be made anywhere people ate meat. The papyrus scroll evolved into

the papyrus codex, which gave way to the vellum codex. "Among the papyri found in

Egypt there have been instances...of papyus manuscripts in codex form."32 The codex

form was encouraged by the ease of use for Christian scriptures, and the vellum codex

overtook the papyrus in popularity. The use of vellum, which is a finer writing surface,

also made possible the first book arts.

Censorship was present in the reign of Augustus to quell the anti-imperial voices

who had been defeated in the Roman civil wars but still opposed the new emperor.

Toward the end of his reign, "bookburning...became an established legal form of

punishment in the Roman empire."33 Books which were found offensive, inflammatory or

deemed inappropriate were sentenced to the flames, and sometimes an author's entire

oevre was burned. Censorship also "began to invade the classrooms of the schools."34 He

was especially sensitive against discussions in classrooms which promoted birth control,

since he wanted to see a reversal in the decline of the Roman birth rate. Tiberius

continued this reign of censorship, and eventually the Christian leadership followed along

with this status quo. Writings of pagan authors or non-church related works were

removed from library collections and relegated to the flames.

Decline of Roman Libraries

Libraries in the Roman Empire enjoyed a period of great blossoming under the

initial imperial support. When the peace and prosperity of Pax Romana dissolved into

warring on the borders of the empire, the leaders turned their focus from cultural

improvement to defense. Libraries were left behind, and the lack of official backing left

them to deteriorate. "After Constantine's foundation of Constantinople 11 May 330, the

14
establishment of libraries in the new capital assumed greater importance."35 When the

capital of the Roman Empire shifted away from Rome, the libraries of Rome were left

behind and forgotten. In about 378, Ammanius Marcellinus "reported that the libraries of

Rome were even then like tombs, closed forever."36

1
Stearns, Peter N., ed. The Encyclopedia of World History. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2001.
2
Ibid.
3
Casson, Lionel. Libraries in the Ancient World. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2001. p. 62.
4
Stearns, Peter N., ed. The Encyclopedia of World History. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2001.
5
Casson, Lionel. Libraries in the Ancient World. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2001. p. 62.
6
Ibid., p. 62-63.
7
As quoted in Lerner, Fred. The Story of Libraries. New York: Continuum, 1998.
8
As quoted in Dunlap, Leslie W., ed. Readings in Library History. New York: R. R. Bowker, 1972. p. 31.
9
As quoted in Harris, Michael. History of Libraries in the Western World. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow
Press, 1995. p. 60.
10
Sider, Sandra. "Herculaneum's Library in 79 A.D.: The Villa of the Papyri." Libraries and Culture, vol.
25, no. 4, Fall 1990. p. 534.
11
Ibid., p. 534-541.
12
Harris, Michael H. History of Libraries in the Western World. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1995. p.
56.
13
Dunlap, Leslie W., ed. Readings in Library History. New York: R. R. Bowker, 1972. p. 29.
14
Casson, Lionel. Libraries in the Ancient World. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2001. p. 68.
15
Ibid., pg. 70.
16
Ibid., pg. 71.
17
Ibid.
18
Dunlap, Leslie W., ed. Readings in Library History. New York: R. R. Bowker, 1972. p. 29.
19
Harris, Michael H. History of Libraries in the Western World. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1995. p.
56.
20
Casson, Lionel. Libraries in the Ancient World. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2001. p. 69.
21
Harris, Michael H. History of Libraries in the Western World. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1995. p.
57.
22
Casson, Lionel. Libraries in the Ancient World. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2001. p. 79.
23
Harris, Michael H. History of Libraries in the Western World. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1995. p.
57.
24
Casson, Lionel. Libraries in the Ancient World. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2001. p. 81.
25
Harris, Michael H. History of Libraries in the Western World. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1995. p.
57.
26
Casson, Lionel. Libraries in the Ancient World. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2001. p. 82.
27
Ibid., p. 84-88.
28
Ibid., p. 89.
29
Ibid., p. 97.
30
Pinner, H.L. The World of Books in Classical Antiquity. Leiden: A.W.Sijthoff, 1949. p. 30.
31
Reichman, Felix. "The Book Trade at the Time of the Roman Empire." The Library Quarterly, p. 40-76.
32
Kenyon, Frederic G. Books and Readers in Ancient Greece and Rome. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1932. p.
94.
33
Cramer, F. H. "Bookburning and Censorship in Ancient Rome," Journal of the History of Ideas 6 (1945):
147-96.
34
Ibid.
35
Bruce, Lorne D. "A Reappraisal of Roman Libraries in the Scriptores Historiae Auguste." Journal of
Library History, Vol. 16, no. 4, Fall 1981., p. 551-569.

15
36
Harris, Michael H. History of Libraries in the Western World. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1995. p.
67.

16