I wanted to do a post about libraries. Having used the services of libraries profusely as a child, I thought a post on beautiful libraries would be fun. However, taking a look at what Google had to say about it, I realized that there are many posts about beautiful libraries. So my writing is taking a slightly different direction.

It seems there have been libraries from the time that there was writing. Even back as far as the 7th century B.C. There were places that people thought to preserve the written word. The library of Ashurbanipal is the oldest known of them. It contained thirty-thousand cuneiform tablets. They were even organized by subject matter(our oldest version of the catalog system).

The ancient library of Alexandria, which once was the world’s intellectual treasure, was burned in a fire in 48 B.C. Although historians disagree on the actual date of demise. It still brings a tear to my eye that so much knowledge was lost.

Another Library that caught my eye, which was unfortunately lost, was the House of Wisdom. Established in the ninth century A.D., it was the Islamic intellectual center for hundreds of years. Scholars would study texts from Persia, Greece, and India and translate them into Arabic for others. Such a shame the Mongols sacked Baghdad, and the library was lost forever. Legend says they threw so many books into the Tigris River the water turned black from the ink.

Now I’m turning my attention to more modern libraries, these libraries have some exciting features. The John Hay Library in Rhode Island has a few books bound in human skin, and if that isn’t macabre enough for you, they also have a vast H.P. Lovecraft collection and other exhibits.

 Then there is my favorite idea of a library, Little Libraries. These libraries are non-profit. The readers can take books to read and leave books behind for others. The goal of little libraries is to increase access to books in their local area, but they have locations worldwide. The first little library was built by Todd H. Bul in 2009 as a tribute to his mother. Believe it, or not little free libraries outnumber public libraries three to one, and over 120 million books have been shared. Amazing.