Overview

The eruption of Mt. Vesuvius that destroyed Pompeii in A.D. 79 also buried nearby Herculaneum. Over time the location of the small town was forgotten, but shortly after its rediscovery in the 1730s, ""excavations"" - more properly, treasure hunts - were organized to unearth ancient sculpture. The richest finds were from a villa that came to be called the Villa dei Papiri, because it also yielded upward of a thousand papyrus rolls - the only library ever to have been recovered from the classical world. To the great excitement of contemporaries, the papyri held out the tantalizing possibility of the rediscovery of lost masterpieces by classical writers. Written for the general reader, this introduction to the ancient library describes the long and difficult history of attempts to unwind the damaged rolls. Sider discusses the texts that have been deciphered and puts them in the context of literacy and Roman society of the time. He describes the form of books in antiquity and the papyrus sheets on which they were written, and he provides an account of attitudes toward books in Greece and Rome and surveys private and civic libraries in the ancient world.

Full Product Details

9780892367993

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Reviews

"""Professor Sider is an expert on the papyri from the villa and in this extremely informative book he describes the long and difficult history of attempts to unroll the papyri. . . . This is a fascinating book with a broad conspectus and explanation of this truly remarkable library."" -- ""Minerva"" (11/1/2006 12:00:00 AM) ""Sider's book, qua book, is a beautiful thing. . . . The story of the Villa--its discovery, the excavation, the personalities, the discovery of the papyri, more personalities, the technical difficulties--is a riveting one, and Sider sets up the narrative well.""-- ""Journal of Roman Archaeology"" ""The vicissitudes of [the rolls'] discovery . . . are told here with verve and scholarly insight. . . . [Sider] has contributed an outstanding introduction to the subject which deserves to be widely read. It is beautifully represented."" -- ""Journal of Classics Teaching"" (4/1/2006 12:00:00 AM) ""This most welcome publication whets our appetite for further Greek and Latin treasures that may still lie buried in the unexcavated parts of the Villa. . . . May this attractive little book signal the dawn of a new era at the foot of the volcano.""-- ""The Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies, Vol. 126"" ""Well written, with a pleasant mix of information and readability."" -- ""Bryn Mawr Classical Review"""

Professor Sider is an expert on the papyri from the villa and in this extremely informative book he describes the long and difficult history of attempts to unroll the papyri. . . . This is a fascinating book with a broad conspectus and explanation of this truly remarkable library. -- Minerva (11/1/2006 12:00:00 AM) Sider's book, qua book, is a beautiful thing. . . . The story of the Villa--its discovery, the excavation, the personalities, the discovery of the papyri, more personalities, the technical difficulties--is a riveting one, and Sider sets up the narrative well. -- Journal of Roman Archaeology The vicissitudes of [the rolls'] discovery . . . are told here with verve and scholarly insight. . . . [Sider] has contributed an outstanding introduction to the subject which deserves to be widely read. It is beautifully represented. -- Journal of Classics Teaching (4/1/2006 12:00:00 AM) This most welcome publication whets our appetite for further Greek and Latin treasures that may still lie buried in the unexcavated parts of the Villa. . . . May this attractive little book signal the dawn of a new era at the foot of the volcano. -- The Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies, Vol. 126 Well written, with a pleasant mix of information and readability. -- Bryn Mawr Classical Review

""Professor Sider is an expert on the papyri from the villa and in this extremely informative book he describes the long and difficult history of attempts to unroll the papyri. . . . This is a fascinating book with a broad conspectus and explanation of this truly remarkable library."" -- ""Minerva"" (11/1/2006 12:00:00 AM) ""Sider's book, qua book, is a beautiful thing. . . . The story of the Villa--its discovery, the excavation, the personalities, the discovery of the papyri, more personalities, the technical difficulties--is a riveting one, and Sider sets up the narrative well.""-- ""Journal of Roman Archaeology"" ""The vicissitudes of [the rolls'] discovery . . . are told here with verve and scholarly insight. . . . [Sider] has contributed an outstanding introduction to the subject which deserves to be widely read. It is beautifully represented."" -- ""Journal of Classics Teaching"" (4/1/2006 12:00:00 AM) ""This most welcome publication whets our appetite for further Greek and Latin treasures that may still lie buried in the unexcavated parts of the Villa. . . . May this attractive little book signal the dawn of a new era at the foot of the volcano.""-- ""The Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies, Vol. 126"" ""Well written, with a pleasant mix of information and readability."" -- ""Bryn Mawr Classical Review""

Author Information

DAVID SIDER is professor of classics at New York University

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