(?)
Quotes are added by the Goodreads community and are not verified by Goodreads. (Learn more)
Stephen Greenblatt

“The fate of the books and all their vast numbers, is epitomized in the greatest library in the ancient world, a library located not in Italy but in Alexandria, the capital of Egypt and the commercial hub of the Eastern Mediterranean. The city had many tourist attractions, including an impressive theater and red light district. But visitors always took note of something quite exceptional, in the center of the city, at the lavish site known as "the museum" most of the intellectual inherits of Greek, Latin, Babylonian, Egyptian and Jewish cultures ad been assembled at enormous costs and carefully archived for researched. Starting as early as 300BCE, the Ptolemaic Kings who ruled Alexandria had the inspired idea of luring leading scholars, scientists and poets to their city by offering them life appointments at their museum...The recipients of this largess established remarkably high intellectual standards. Euclid developed his geometry in Alexandria, Archimedes discovered Pi and laid the foundation of calculus.”

Stephen Greenblatt, The Swerve: How the World Became Modern
tags: alexandria, egypt
Read more quotes from Stephen Greenblatt


Share this quote:
Share on Twitter

Friends Who Liked This Quote

To see what your friends thought of this quote, please sign up!

0 likes
All Members Who Liked This Quote

None yet!


This Quote Is From

The Swerve: How the World Became Modern The Swerve: How the World Became Modern by Stephen Greenblatt
34,711 ratings, average rating, 3,509 reviews
Open Preview

Browse By Tag