Destruction of Libraries
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is List of Libraries and places of learning destroyed through history .
| Name of Library | City | Country | Date of Destruction | Destroyed by | Reason and/or Account of Destruction |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Library of Alexandria | Alexandria | Egypt | Disputed | Disputed | Unknown/Disputed |
| Royal Library | Ctesiphon, Khvârvarân | Persia | AD 651 | Arab Invaders | Arab Conquest of Persia
According to an account in Al-Tabari, the Arab Commander Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas wrote to Caliph `Umar ibn al-Khattāb about what should be done with the books at the Persian capital of Ctesiphon in province of Khvârvarân (today known as Iraq). Umar wrote back: "If the books contradict the Qur'an, they are blasphemous. On the other hand, if they are in agreement, they are not needed." All the books were thrown into the Euphrates. |
| Nalanda | Nalanda | India | AD 1193 | Bakhtiyar Khilji | In 1193, the Nalanda University complex was sacked by Turkic Muslim invaders under Bakhtiyar Khilji; this event is seen as a milestone in the decline of Buddhism in India. It is said that Khilji asked if there was a copy of the Koran at Nalanda before he sacked it |
| House of Wisdom | Baghdad | Iraq | AD 1258 | Mongol Invaders | Destruction of Baghdad
The Grand Library of Baghdad, containing countless precious historical documents and books on subjects ranging from medicine to astronomy, was destroyed. Survivors said that the waters of the Tigris ran black with ink from the enormous quantities of books flung into the river. Typically, the Mongols destroyed a city only if it had resisted them. The destruction of Baghdad was to some extent a military tactic: it was supposed to convince other cities and rulers to surrender without a fight |
| Oriental Institute (Orijentalni institut) | Sarajevo | Bosnia-Herzegovina | May 17, 1992 | Slavic Nationalists | Siege of Sarajevo
The shellfire caused extensive damage to the city's structures, including civilian and cultural property. By September 1993, 35,000 structures were completely destroyed. Some of the more significant of these were the building of the presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the National Library, which burned to the ground along with thousands of irreplaceable texts. |
