CELSUS

Writing, Book and Library in Antiquity :

Sumerians were the first society who used writing in the history. The writing was first used by calculating the products brought to the temples by priests. First writing that the priests used was pictography. This writing was written on clay tablets with reed pens. They drew wedge-shaped signs on tablets. This is the writing called cuneiform. The name cuneiform itself simply means "wedge shaped", from the Latin cuneus "wedge" and forma "shape," and came into English usage probably from Old French cunéiforme.

After Egyptians have developed their commercial relationships with Sumerians, they have started to learn writing after that it has been named hieroglyph. There is no vowel in it, so it could not become an alphabet. Hittites and Urartus used cuneiform and Ionians, Lydians and Phrygians used Phoenician Alphabet. As Greeks develop their own writings by adding new letters to the alphabet that they have learned from Phoenicians, Romans created Latin Alphabet by modifying Greek Alphabet. The Turks first used the writing in Orkhon Inscriptions.

Library of Celsus :

The library of Celsus is an ancient Roman building in Ephesus, Anatolia, now part of Selçuk, İzmir. It was built in honour of the Roman Senator Tiberius Julius Celsus Polemaeanus. It has been built by the order of Celsus’ son Gaius Julius Aquila and completed in 135 AD. The construction of the library took 18 years. It has been written on a half-broken inscription which is sited on the entrance gate of library: “For Tiberius Julius Celsus Polemaeanus, Gaius Julius Aquila, son of Celsus, proconsul of Asia, who founds the Celsian library from his own wealth, and adorns the building with every decoration, offering and with books.”

 

Celsus Library is a monument which was built on the mausoleum of a roman senator Tiberius Julius Celsus Polemaeanus in the first quarter of 2nd century AD.
Sagacious Heraclitus, Artemidorus the diviner, Callinus and Hipponax the poets, Zenodotus the grammarian, Soranus and Rufus the doctors… Many important names left their mark upon this library.
3rd major library of the Antiquity… The construction took 18 years. It has a capacity of 12 000 books. Roman architectural characteristics have been completely reflected with its front side decoration. It is one of the most beautiful examples of its epoch.

 

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There is a representational illustration of Celsus Library in the middle of our design.

Four women who represent the wisdom, virtue, knowledge and the comprehension are illustrated on four big section of our design.

Medusa sculpture on the Hadrianus Temple which is the one of the important parts of Ephesus is illustrated on the border of the design.

Also the Nike Statue which is located in Domitian Square is seen on the border.


 

 

Celsus Library and in our design

 

  

Hadrianus Temple’s symbol, Medusa

 

  

Nike Statue in Domitian Square

 

Our Celsus Design