Page:Biblical Libraries (Richardson).djvu/184



From the conquests of Alexander (d. 325) on, the touch of Greek culture is upon the whole world and the history of libraries is a history of Greek libraries. The libraries of Asia Minor, Egypt, Syria, Palestine even and then Rome are largely Greek as to their books, Greek in architecture and Greek as to organization and keeper. In a sense modern library history begins with Aristotle, Alexander and Alexandria—say just before 325 B.C. and Biblical history first comes in touch with these libraries in the Alexandrian library about 280 B.C.

The history of the earlier Attic development of libraries which flowered in the libraries of Greater Greece, beginning