Page:The library a magazine of bibliography and library literature, Volume 6.djvu/341

 The Vatican Library. 329 of Lucullus (B.C. 110-57), though really a private collection, may be termed justly a public one ; if we are to believe the authority of Plutarch, who distinctly says that it was open to all. 1 The first public library in Rome owes its origin to none other than Julius Caesar. " His institution of a public library," Meri- vale remarks, " not offered to the citizens for their use, but sur- rendered to them for their own property, was a novelty in the career of civilization." There can be little doubt of the fact, though, according to Pliny, the first actually was built and opened about B.C. 36 by Asinius Pollio. It stood in the Temple of Liberty on the Aventine, one wing for Greek and one for Latin literature. 2 Four years later Augustus founded the Octavian Library, in the porticos of Octavia, in honour of his sister. This was de- stroyed by fire, A.D. 8o. 3 He also built the Palatine Library by the Temple of Apollo, on the Palatine, arranged in the same way as that in the Temple of Liberty. This, too, was de- stroyed by fire, on the night between the i8th and igth of March, A.D. 363. It was in a secret chamber under the statue of Apollo here that the Sibylline books were preserved. Ammianus says that these survived more than one fire, and even this last one which destroyed the whole of this group of buildings. 4 Tiberius gave up a wing of his palace for a similar institu- tion, which suffered the same fate in A.D. 191. It would seem that he also enlarged the already existing libraries of Augustus. Vespasian established a fifth in his Forum of Peace. But the most magnificent one was founded by the emperor Trajan, hence called the Ulpian Library, in Trajan's forum. Diocletian, in the third century, removed this to ornament his baths on the Viminal. Librarians of various grades were appointed to the old Pala- tine Libraries, as may be seen from inscriptions still extant. 1 Lucullus, 42. 2 See Merivale, History of Romans under the Empire, new ed., i865 vol. ii. p. 403, for an important note relating to this priority. Dr. Lanciani, op. cit., p. 184, accepts the claim of Pollio without further comment. 3 Lanciani, pp. 184-6. 4 Ammianus xxiii. 3 (Middleton, Rome in 1888, Edin., 1888, p. 107). 5 Corpus Inscr. Latt., VI. ii., 5188, 5189, 4233, 5190, &c. Of these I produce two (Middleton, op. cit., p. 107).