THE SCIENTIFIC JOURNAL ON THEORY AND PRACTICE OF LIBRARIANSHIP
ISSN 2217-5563
 

Novi broj


Nenad Idrizović
Narodna biblioteka Srbije, Beograd
nenad.idrizovic@nb.rs


Early Christian Library in Caesarea Palestine


Summary
Library of Caesarea, the best known early Christian library was founded by Origen at the beginning of the third century. With Origen’s arrival, Caesarea Palestine became the intellectual center of the Christian world. By establishing a library, which was at the beginning his private collection, Origen improved the tradition and the quality of the educational system for the young Christians. Besides Christian works, Origen was familiar with the works of Plato, Nicomachean, Pythagoras and others, and therefore he collected those works for the library as well. If Origen’s collection provided the initial stack, its subsequent development owed much to the energy and interests of Pamphilus and later to the efforts of the Caesarean bishops Eusebius, Acacius and Euzoius. After the fourth century there is no reliable information on the existence of the Library of Caesarea. The Library was probably destroyed during the Persian invasion (614 — 629), or 640 years later when the Arabs conquered the city. Prior archaeological researches have not determined where the library was really located, nor can we speak with the certainty about the size of its collection.
Research results show that in the early third century Christians had renowned bibliographers and librarians. The Library in Caesarea Palestine can be compared with the great libraries of the ancient world. The Library has exceeded the form of the congregational library and its collections were used for further scientific research and copying of the books.

Keywords:
Library in Caesarea Palestine, Origen, Pamphilus, Eusebius of Caesarea, Acacius, Euzoius, manuscripts, scriptorium.



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