The Making of the Vatican Library

Rome's greatest library holds many of the world's greatest treasures. Its very existence, however, is a remarkable tale of survival and vision...

The Sistine Halls, Apostolic Palace, Vatican City, photograph taken by the author

The institutions of Man, particularly those of great fame and historic pedigree, are often taken for granted. Rome herself, it was once believed, could not possibly fall — and yet fall she did. In her wake, the nascent Roman Church was tasked with kindling the flickering flame of civilisation, and safeguarding its knowledge.

Between the mythology surrounding it and the reality that built it, the mother library of the Church now seems a pillar of history that has never been shaken. But in truth, its very existence today was never guaranteed. Almost extinguished from the face of the Earth at a time even when Christianity was dominant in Europe, it was only thanks to the unswerving vision and devotion of a few learned men that it was resurrected from ruin and raised to glory.

Today, we tell the story of how the world’s most prestigious library came into being — and what is perhaps the most precious of all its sacred contents…