Save the Date: MN Friends of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina

The Minnesota Friends of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina cordially invite you to cocktails and dinner in honor of Dr. Ismail Serageldin, Director General of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Alexandria, Egypt

Friday, August 7, 2015, 6:00 p.m.

Atlas Grill
U.S. Bank Plaza
200 South Sixth Street
Minneapolis, MN 55401

Ticket Cost: $60

Register now via Eventbrite>>

The Biblioteca Alexandrina was the largest and most famous library of the Ancient World, comparable in its scope to the Seven Wonders. Founded by Alexander’s successor, Ptolemy I, in the Third Century BC, it housed scrolls, parchments and papyri from the entirety of the world of its time for the benefit of scholars, philosophers and men and women of letters. Sadly, the fall of the Roman Empire brought with it the destruction of that wonderful repository of thought and wisdom

As the Greeks left us the basics of government, and the Romans the structure of civic life, Alexandria left us the legacy of knowledge.
The modern Bibliotheca Alexandrina is a re-creation of that ancient legacy. Built by the Egyptian government, it opened its doors to the public in 2002 to reveal a complex consisting of nine academic centers, an international conference facility, four museums, six specialized libraries, a total of 1.5 million physical volumes, an immense digital book archive, and a supercomputer that can access 45 databases in multiple languages.

Sponsoring groups:

The Minnesota Friends of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina
Books For Africa
The Harvard Club of Minnesota
Amara Wines
The Friends of the St. Paul Public Libraries
The Alliance Française of Minneapolis and St. Paul
The Minnesota Trade Office
St. Catherine University Master of Library and Information Science Program
The Hubert H. Humphrey School of the University of Minnesota
Minnesota International Center