One of the largest libraries in antiquity, the Library of Celsus, found at the site of Ephesus on the western coast of Turkey, was commissioned in 114 CE to commemorate the Roman consul and governor Tiberius Julius Celsus Polemaeanus. Both a mausoleum and library, the building held around 12,000 scrolls, rivaling the libraries of Alexandria and Pergamum. The library was destroyed in 262, possibly during the Gothic invasion of the city. Today, all that remains is the façade, elaborately decorated with carvings and statuary. The two-story edifice boasts 16 columns built using a forced perspective technique that made the building […]
