Publisher's Synopsis
This work chronicles the development of the library from 3000 BC to 1600 AD. Beginning with the clay tablet libraries of the ancient empires, to those inspired by the Italian Renaissance, the history of these great depositories of human knowledge is examined, together with that of the scholars and librarians who struggled to increase and preserve their precious holdings. Illustrated throughout, this large format volume should provide an addition to the library of every bibliophile.
