At
last a reference book
that
is only about library and book superlatives.
Book Editions
2019 Online Companion For Library World Records: The Lists
In summer 2014, when I began fresh research work for the 3rd edition of Library World Records
I had the advantage of two previous editions of my reference book already on the book market for just over 10 years.
The first edition of Library World Records having being published in summer
in 2004. During this 10-year period, I benefited from numerous reviews of the 1st and 2nd editions of the reference boook by librarians around the world,
as well as input and numerous tips from a worldwide audience ranging from librarians and students to ordinary readers, who all emailed to me about
updates to existing facts in the books or new facts to add for a new edition.
My research work for the 3rd edition of Library World Records
was in two parts, first was locating new facts and the second was independent verification of the facts.
Take for instance the chapter in the 3rd edition titled "World Records for Books, Periodicals and Bookstores"
It spans more than 100 entries on such subheadings as: Earliest Written Works in English,
Welsh, Irish, and Scottish; Earliest Written Works in Japanese and Korean;
First Book Printed in Hebrew; First Books Printed in Russian and Eastern European Languages; Biggest,
Heaviest and Smallest Books etc. I was able to verify all the new facts from at least three independent and reliable sources.
Where different dates are given for instance, I used the majority rule: e.g. for data covering the first book printed in Engish, I used
sources citing the same date more often for the date the first book in English was printed.
What is Library World Records? Library World Records provides answers to such questions as:
Which universities in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, Africa and the Americas have the largest libraries?
What is the name of oldest public libraries in all of the different continents of the world?
In what year was the very first CD-ROM book released?
What are the names of the oldest texts written in Greek, Celtic and Latin?
What are the top fifty world's most expensive books and manuscripts ever auctioned at either Sotheby’s or Christie’s?
In what years were the very first books printed in French, Hausa, Thai, Japanese, Spanish, Hindi, Russian, English, Arabic, Kurdish and Turkish published?
What are the name of the oldest extant texts or inscriptions written in Chinese, Hindi, English, German, Sanskrit, Mongolian and Malay?
When was the first major computer database used in libraries?
What are the titles of the largest, heaviest, smallest and most expensive books ever published?
Where in the world are the world’s five busiest public libraries?
Who was the very first author to use a typewriter and in what year did it happen?
Which famous horror fiction writer, prime ministers and movie stars also worked in libraries?
What is the name of the very first Sub-Saharan African university library founded in the 15th century?
What are the titles of the largest journals and magazines in world?
What are the top five world's most widely read magazines and newspapers around the world?
By virtue of having the oldest and the first writing systems in the world, which top 10 nations around the world were the first to write books?
Which libraries have the most expensive budgets in the world?
Which 200 major movies were filmed in libraries?
How many libraries are there in Russia, the U.K., Germany, France, the U.S., Japan and Egypt?
Which libraries in Europe and the U.S. have the oldest copies of the Gutenberg Bible?
Which libraries in Europe and the U.S. have the oldest copies of the Bible before 500 AD?
When were the first ten university libraries in Asia and the Middle East founded?
Where can we find the oldest extant library building in the world?
Which Germanic tribes that migrated to England France, Russia and Spain, after the end of the Roman Empire
wrote the earliest Runic inscriptions in Europe, ignoring the Latin alphabet of the Romans?
What is the name of the first major University library in Europe to open 24 hours a day?
Even though much of Africa had a strong oral tradition, what is the name of the first major books to be written in Africa, in an African language,
south of the Sahara Desert, using the Roman alphabet?
Which countries publish the largest annual number of books in the world?
What are the names of the first three famous published books in the world to contain photographs?
What is the name of the very first book to use page numbers?
Where in the world are the tallest bookstores and library buildings?
What is the name of the most expensive book theft in the world?
What famous book caused its author to be burned at stake for being a heretic?
Which famous ruler of England was barred from entering England's most famous library and why?
Where in Asia can the largest stone inscriptions be found?
Which library in the world was the first to illuminate the library with electric bulbs?
What is the name of the list of books that were banned by the Vatican for hundreds of years?
What are the names of the world's oldest surviving papyrus, vellum, parchment and paper manuscripts?
Which top libraries around the world have more than 500 staff members?
What is the name of the very first printed book in the world to have page numbers?
What is the title of the book that became part of the expensive book project?
What are the names of the first books and illuminated manuscripts to be published in colour?
What are the names of the largest art libraries, history databases, engineering libraries, and geography databases?
What are the names of the 200 largest libraries in the world?
Finally.... What are the names of the 100 oldest libraries in the world?
All these these inquisitive questions are just a few
samples of over 600 questions, whose answers can be found in
third edition of Library World Records, the first specific reference book of its kind to be published in the
world, covering a wide range of library and book superlatives, and in paperback format.
With more than
410 photographs from around the world showcasing ancient and modern libraries, papyrus, parchment and velum manuscripts, clay and stone inscriptions,
incunabula, library buildings and famous librarians etc, the 1st, 2nd and 3rd editions of Library World Records
offers readers amazing facts and figures
about libraries around the world, and the three important things we normally find in
them: books, periodicals and databases. The new book deals with
superlatives and comparative information such as the first, the
largest, the oldest, the smallest, most expensive, and other miscellanea in several categories covering a period of more than 5000 years.
The listed hundreds of facts above also vividly
illustrate the wonder and rich evolution of books and libraries from crude and simple to sophisticated,
complex and efficient.
Since the 3rd edition of the book was published in September 2017, I have either come across extra new information or have been made aware of extra new
information that will compliment the already published 2017 book edition.
This section of the website thus contains extra information (and the sources) for all those who already have a copy of the 3rd edition
of Library World Records.
Every month, on a Friday starting from March 2018, I will update this webpage with brand new information that has come to light.
I hope that by end of summer 2018,
I will have so many updates, making this web page as popular as the book itself and a worthy online companion.
If you would like to contribute new information on as well, on any world record about book, libraries, librarians etc please use my email below.
Please include any source(s) to verify the information.
2019 Online Companion For Library World Records: The Lists
Before You Start Reading The Online Companion You need three things: a copy of Library World Records 3rd edition,
a nice spot in a library or cafe
to read the
online companion on your tablet or laptop and finally you need a few hours to spare. If you don't have a copy of Library World Records 3rd edition yet,
you can
borrow a copy from your local university or public library. Almost all the major national libraries around the world have a copy of Library World
Records 3rd edition or have placed an order.
In Britain, for instance, you can read all three editions of Library World Records at the British Library in London.
UPDATES FOR DECEMBER 2018 Next update May 2019.
N.B. All new and updated library world records added below are arranged in the order found in the book's contents pages.
World Records for National Libraries World Records for Public and Subscription Libraries World Records for University and Academic Libraries
List 64. Oldest university libraries in the world.
Old University Library in the World Has been Reopened
On pages 72 to 74 in Library World Records 3rd edition, I wrote a detailed essay about the earliest university libraries in the world. Then on pages
75 to 76 of the book, I compiled a detailed list of the oldest existing university libraries in the world. The very first university
library listed, based in Africa (have a guess! or check out the book)
had been closed for several years due to the old age of the building. The 19th September 2016 issue of the popular U.K. Guardian broadsheet newspaper
announced that the library had reopened..finally!! During the restortion work, the ancient library's oldest and most
important and most treasured books and manuscripts and inscriptions were stored in a high-tech security government bank vault! Some of the high-tech technology
introduced to preserve its most ancient books and manuscripts (made from paper, parchment, vellum and papyrus etc) are amazing. One of them involved a newly
constructed sewage
underground canal system, which was added to help drain away moisture that can degrade the fragile materials a lot of the books and manuscripts are made of,
most notably 10th century AD paper, papyrus and parchment documents among others. Two other high technology used were digital scanners that can identity tiny holes in ancient
manuscripts so it can be patched immediately, and a special machine that can gently spray a special liquid that moistens rare manuscripts enough to
prevent them from cracking. Some of the other ancient university libraries listed on pages 75 to 76 of
Library World Records 3rd edition have began similar restoration works or are in the process of doing so. Sometimes libraries doing restoration work also have to
re-bind the fragile spine of incunabula (or books printed before the 1501). The most popular present day technology used all
over the world to preserve library book and manuscript collections is still of course to
digitize them for storage, sharing and display on computers forever.
The digitization and preservation and reparing of ancient and rare books and manuscripts with expensive equipment
are major ongoing projects in many countries around the world. National and local governments are under pressure to increase the budgets of libraries
to enable them to
carry out necessary restoration projects. Image Copyright eRecordsUSA.
List 64. Oldest university libraries in the U.K.
New Facts: Old English in medieval British Schools
On page 78 in Library World Records 3rd edition, we learn about the oldest university libraries in Britain, and then the oldest schools and school libraries in Britain between the AD 400s to AD 1100.
If you don’t understand the origins of modern English very well, you will be amazed to know that the language of instruction, used in the aforementioned
schools between the AD 400s to AD 1100 in the book
was in Old English, which today is over 90% different from modern English in both grammar and written form!! Try to see if you can understand the
first sentence in the picture shown below.
This Old English text comes from the famous Beowulf manuscript housed in the British Library. This is the type of English used in between AD 400s to AD 1100 in the earliest primary and secondary schools in Britain.
The libraries of these schools also had books written in the Old English. Latin was also a major language of instruction and in many cases Latin and not Old English was the language of choice. Image Copyright, The British Library.
List 67. Oldest university libraries in Spain
New Facts: Salamanca University and Hernán Cortés
On pages 76 and 81 in Library World Records 3rd edition, I provide fascinating details about the famous Salamanca University Library in northern Spain.
Alongside personal photographs I took of the famous library during my visit to Spain in 2014 which you can view in the book, I also go on to explain how the
likes of Christopher Columbus consulted the library just before his 1492 voyage to discover the Americas. I have been made aware of another famous Spanish explorer
who is associated with Salamanca University: his name is Hernán Cortés. After consulting Encyclopedia Britannica, it is indeed a fact.
But while Christopher Columbus consulted the Salamanca University library, Hernán Cortés was actually a student of the universty.
Hernán Cortés is best remembered today as the Spanish Conquistador who took on the mighty Aztec Empire in Mexico (twice the size of Spain), and conquered it then years later was ruled by Spanish
King of Castile and his successors in the early 16th century till the early 19th century.
In 1501, Hernán Cortés was a student of Salamanca University studying law and Latin. Fast forward 18 years later:
Hernán Cortés arrived what is today, Mexico's state of Tabasco, then part of the mighty Aztec Empire with 11 ships, 608 soldiers and sailors and 16 horses.
As seen in the picture above, Hernán Cortés meets Montezuma II (leader of the Aztec Empire), pleasantries are exchanged and the rest is history.
Image Copyright, Theaztec-empire.weebly.com.
World Records for Speciality Libraries and Archives Miscellaneous World Records for Libraries World Records for Books, Periodicals and Bookstores
List 124. Oldest existing written works
This section of Library World Records 3rd edition, is one of the most comprehensive in the entire book (over 67 pages devoted to studying how
reading and writing began in the world). This list in
particular
takes a detailed look at the very first places in the world to not only develop writing systems,
but also produce the very first manuscripts and first inscriptions, starting from 6,000 years ago. Prior to 6,000 years ago, no one in the world
could read or write at all. Literacy was 0%! everywhere. People were of course speaking different languages back then,
for instance, in Europe most people spoke just 3 or 4 languages, chief among them was what is termed proto Indo-European language (ancestor to 98% of modern
European languages). Today, in some countries like Denmark, literacy is a prefect 100%.
List 124. How was the Alphabet Invented?
New Facts
On pages 133 to 155 in Library World Records 3rd edition, I provided an amazing list of the very first alphabets invented (about 2,000 years
after writing was invented 6,000 years ago) and the first books produced
using alphabetic writing systems. I list the titles of so many of the first major books produced
using alphabetic writing from Africa, the Middle East to Europe and Asia. Many of these ancient books and manuscripts
survive today in the rare book collections of libraries aroud the world.
The alphabet as we know it today, was first invented in three places: by the Canaanites (Semitic people living an an area that is modern day Palestine), their alphabet was
known as the Proto-Sinatic script, some scholars call it the Proto-Cannanite script.
The other earlier
alphabet invented by Semitic people living in what is today modern day Syria, the (Ugaritic script) due to discovery of the
famous Ras Shamra inscriptions. The Semitic people living in ancient Lebanon or Phoenicia invented the 3rd type of the alphabet (the one we still use today,
the Phoenician script).
Scholars today agree that the Proto-Cannanite script was developed by the Canaanites who once lived in the Sinai in ancient Egypt
and were desperately trying to use the ancient
Egyptian Hieratic script to write words in their own semitic language. In the diagram above, notice some similarities
between the letters used in the Hieratic script and the letters used in the Phoenician script (a modification of the Proto-Cannanite script).
As seen in the diagram above, the letter "O" today has not changed much since the ancient Greek alphabet and Roman alphabet copied it from the Phoenician script.
The Phoenicians used the circular shape of the human eyes to represent the letter "O" (in the Phoenician language, the eye was called ayin). And the Greeks and Romans
passed on the shape of the letter O onto us unchanged, unlike some of other letters of the Phoenician script that are quite different from the letters used in
the Roman alphabet today.
When the Phoenicians adopted their own alphabet from the Proto-Cannanite script circa 1,400 BC (i.e. as seen in the Serabit el-Kadem inscription), it shows
a complete break from using any pictures at all,
and instead simple signs are used throughout, as we now do for all our modern alphabets like the Roman, Greek and Cyrillic alphabets.
Of the three major ancient Semitic inscriptions mentioned in detail in pages 133 to 155 of Library World Records 3rd edition, viz: the Serabit el-Kadem, the Ras Shamra and the Wadi el-Hol inscriptions,
Professor Orly Goldwasser of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, writing in the respected journal, Biblical Archaeological Review
(Spring 2010 issue),
theorizes that it was the Serabit el-Kadem inscriptions or Serabit el-Kadim inscriptions (first discovered by Sir Flinders Petrie and his wife Hilda
Petrie in 1905 in the Sinai Peninsula) that was modified by the Phoenicians for their own use in the Phoenician script.
The article by Professor Orly Goldwasser also provides a fascinating narrative of just how the Semites (Canaanites),
working in turquoise mines for the Egyptians at Serabit el-Kadem in the Sinai, had out of curiosity, began looking
for a way to translate Egyptian hieroglyphics into their own Canaanite (Amorite) language, and unbeknown to them
invented an alphabetic writing system whose basic concepts would still be used today.
The alphabet is in no doubt, the
most important human invention after the all-important invention of agriculture circa 10,000 BC, alongside the invention of the wheel and the invention of
bronze (metal) tools) to replace stone tools.
Around 980 BC the Greeks are introduced to the alphabet by the Phoenicians (becoming the 5th nation
to adopt an
alphabetic writing system). The ancient Greeks are thus the first Western
Europeans to begin to write books such as the author Homer. Later on the Greeks pass on the alphabet
to the Romans (via the Etruscans) in Italy and the rest is history. You can learn more about the
earliest writing systems in the world in great detail, as well as the first books and libraries in the world,
in Library World Records 3rd edition pages 7 to 204.
List 124. Oldest written works from ancient Egypt. The ancient Egyptian Hieratic script (and the later Demotic script)
was invented after the pharoahs rightly figured out that it was just too difficult to
write hieroglyphs on papyrus.
New Facts: The King Khufu Papyrus (Diary of Merer) and the Great Pyramid of Egypt
On pages 139 and 190 of Library World Records 3rd edition, we learn about the famous King Khufu Papyrus or the Diary of Merer.
Shown on the British Channel 4 TV in early November 2017 was an amazing documentary film titled Egypt’s Great Pyramid:
The New Evidence. From the TV documentary we learn in great detail exactly how the Great Pyramid of Egypt, at Giza for
King Khufu, (ancient Egyptian monarch of the Fourth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom period), was constructed.
Deciphering the famous King Khufu Papyrus was what allowed archaeologists in 2013 and 2014 to work out exactly how the Great Pyramid was built. Today the Great
Pyramid at Giza is the only survivor of the famous Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. What is amazing is that despite the very ancient
age of the fragile papyrus (dating from 2,600 BC)
today’s technology has not only allowed the papyrus to be preserved till eternity, but also accurately decipher the ancient document in great
detail accurately. The King Khufu Papyrus was discovered by archaeologist Pierre Talket in 2013. He is also among the leading experts who completely deciphered
the 4,700 year old papyrus document in 2016. The ancient papyrus document was written by an ancient Egyptian sailor and engineer named Merer, who with about 40 other men
were in charge of bringing the stone blocks and and other tools from areas close to the River Nile to Giza, where thousands of other men worked around the clock to build the Great
Pyramid. The King Khufu Papyrus (written in the ancient Egyptian Hieratic script) revealed for the first time just how the stone blocks used for the construction of the Great Pyramid
were transported along River Nile using specially built ancient boats. Today you can view the famous King Khufu Papyrus at the equally famous Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
The King Khufu Papyrus is so fragile, the papyrus is encased in an air tight enclosure, see photograph below.
In the 1st and 2nd edition of Libary World Records,
one papyrus document from the ancient world stood out as the oldest surviving document written on papyrus anywhere in the world. In 2013, that world record
was broken with the discovery of the King Khufu Papyrus or Diary of Merer as shown above. The 4,700 year old papyrus document, (it dates from about 2,600 BC), was written in the ancient Egyptian Hieratic script.
Pages 139 and 190 of Library World Records 3rd edition explains more about this famous papyrus, and the previous world record holder. Image Copyright New China/Xinhua.
List 132. Oldest written works produced in Britain (from Pre-Roman times to AD 1600s).
New Facts: The Bayeux Tapestry
On pages 172 to 179 (List 132) of Library World Records 3rd edition, we are
informed about the oldest written works produced in Britain. The various texts examined in great detail, span Pre-Roman and Celtic texts (before AD 43);
Roman texts and inscriptions AD 43 to AD 410; Old English (Anglo-Saxon texts) from AD 400s to AD 1100 (including Futhorc runes); Middle English texts from AD 1100 to AD 1500; and
Modern English texts from AD 1500 (of which the texts of William
Shakespeare are the most revered). Members of the public fluent in modern English today would struggle to understand texts in Old English due to changes in grammer and spellings.
But there is one famous relic sandwiched between the medieval era of the Anglo-Saxons and the very start of the Anglo-Norman era, that members of the
public fluent in modern English can understand to some extent just by looking at it:
The Bayeux Tapestry. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, the 230 ft long Bayeux Tapestry tells the story of Duke of Normandy, William The Conqueror's invasion of
England and the Battle of Hastings in AD 1066. It was most likely commissioned in Kent, England, circa AD 1070s by William The Conqueror's half-brother,
Bishop Odo. In the 18th century it was "rediscovered" at the Bayeux Cathedral (a Roman Catholic Church in Normandy, France).
However the relic has very few texts (at least not in sufficient quantities), it is full of pictures of soldiers in battle, animals and weapons used etc and
one needs to view each individual picture in the Bayeux Tapestry very carefully from start to finish, one by one, before a conclusion could be made about
the fascinating story it is trying to convey. On this basis, the 950-year old Bayeux Tapestry is rightly called by English history scholars, the oldest major
cartoon narrative of the Anglo-Saxon England era. In January 2018, French president Emmanuel Macron promised
that British museums would be able to display the Bayeux Tapestry sometime in 2023, when it is loaned to the British people. It is currenty at a museum in Bayeux.
The Bayeux Tapestry shown above, has been called by scholars, the oldest major
cartoon narrative of the Anglo-Saxon England. Image Copyright, Getty Images.
List 190. Biggest, Heaviest and Smallest Books New Facts
On pages 212 to 214 of Library World Records 3rd edition, we are presented with a detailed list of the biggest, smallest and heaviest books in the world.
If I was asked to list ten records in my new book which were the easiest to compile, I would include this list. The issue of verification is not a problem. If a printer
claims
they have just printed the "biggest book in the world"........... we just have to say "show us the photo". All of the biggest, smallest and heaviest books in the world listed in
Library World Records 3rd edition are on display for members of the pubic to see and visually verify! The first book to measure over 16 feet in height was revealed by the
Mshahed International Group in Dubai, United Arab Emirates in 2012. The book titled Prophet Mohamed has been verified as being 16.4 feet tall and 26.44 feet
wide. It has also
smashed the world record for the heaviest books listed in detail in Library World Records 3rd edition: Prophet Mohamed weighs an astounishing 3,306 pounds
or 1,500 kg! Due to way different language scholars use
transliteration of Arabic names to work out the Roman alphabet equivalents, the book Prophet Mohamed is instead called Prophet Muhammad in other sources. The
book is a biography about
the life and times of Islam's greatest phophet. It was written by Abdullah Abdulaziz Al-Muslih, an author from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The book project was produced by
Mshahed International Group based in Dubai, and funded by Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, the finance minister of the United Arab Emirates and deputy ruler of Dubai.
No expense was spared: the book production cost an estimated $2.9 million! and needed about 53 people to help in the production and construction. It has been on display
at various venues in the UAE including the Mushrif Hall in the Global Vilage, the Al-Arabi Center and the Al-Hamra Hall. It still hasn't been displayed at the biggest
bookstore in Dubai: Japan's famous global Kinokuniya bookstore based inside the famous massive Dubai Mall. Extra sweetener: The Dubai Mall is right next to the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world!
Oh....by the way, the Dubai Mall is the largest shopping mall in the world by total area.
EXTRA FACT
The book Prophet Mohamed is not for sale, but since it cost an estimated $2.9 million to produce, one could deduce that should
more similar copies be made, this time for sale, each would likely cost over at least estimated $2 million each.
On page 219 and 225 of Library World Records 3rd edition or List 207, I listed the most expensive books that could be bought from a bookstore. Meanwhile on
pages 220 to 224 of Library World Records 3rd edition, I provide a very detailed list of the most expensive auction of books / manuscripts worldwide. The
books listed on pages 220 to 224 are EXPENSIVE,
as several of the books / manuscripts cost over $15 million!!
In 2012, the world record for the biggest and heaviest
book in the world was smashed! You can read about the previous world record holders of the biggest and heaviest books worldwide in pages 212 to 214 of Library World Records 3rd edition. Image Copyright Arab News.com
List 190. Biggest, Heaviest and Smallest Books New Facts
On pages 212 to 214 of Library World Records 3rd edition, we are presented with a detailed list of the biggest, smallest and heaviest books in the world.
If I was asked to list ten records in my new book which were the easiest to compile, I would include this list. The issue of verification is not a problem. If a printer
claims
they have just printed the "smallest book in the world"........... we just have to say "show us the photo". All of the biggest, smallest and heaviest books in the world listed in
Library World Records 3rd edition are on display for members of the pubic to see and visually verify!
The first book to measure less than 0.004 inches in dimensions was certifed and verified in 2012 by Guinness World Records. At that size, the book fits on a human hair. The book
titled Teeny Ted From Turnip Town was written by a Canadian author Malcolm Douglas Chaplin and can only be read using an electron microscope, not a normal microscope.
While the biggest book in the world cost an estimated $2.9 million to produced, the smallest book cost an estimated $15,000 to produce.
In 2012, the world record for the smallest
book in the world was also smashed! You can read about the previous world record holders of the smallest
books worldwide in pages 212 to 214 of Library World Records 3rd edition. Image Copyright Daily Mail newspaper / Caters News Agency.
List 199. First author to use a typewriter
New Facts
On page 217 of Library World Records 3rd edition, we are told about very first major author anywhere in the world to use a typewriter, to type thier precious
manuscript and have it published.
The company that made the world's first typewriter was U.S. company called Remington in 1874.
Today Remington's lasting legacy still exists on computer keyboards on every laptop, tablet, desktop computer and phone etc today: the top row of
letters on all modern keyboards: QWERTYUIOP.
Because of the investment in the training of first typists, the adoption of the QWERTY format by Remington, the natural reluctance of
QWERTY-familiar people to change when other keyboard layouts were tested later on by Remington, and all the other makers of typewriters worldwide who copied
Remington's QWERTY format, there is no doubt that the QWERTYUIOP keyboard is one
innovation that will be with us for a very very long time to come!
List 207. Most Expensive Book (rare books/manuscripts)
New Facts
On page 205 and then on pages 220 to 225 of Library World Records 3rd edition, I produced a detailed list of the most expensive books and manuscripts ever sold.
To compile this list I spent several weeks at the British Library in London and the national libraries in Germany, France and Italy,
pouring over hundreds of newspaper reports as well as reference sources. A printer’s manuscript of the only handwritten copy of the sacred original manuscript dicated
by Joseph Smith, was acquired
by the Mormon Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (or LDS) for a world record $35 million in September 2017. It is about $5 million more than the previous
world record for a book auction listed in Library World Records 3rd edition. According to the Smithsonian Institution website the book's former owner was
an American denomination known as the Community of Christ. The auctioned manuscript is particularly significant because it is largely intact,
missing just three lines of text. Joseph Smith is said to have placed the original copy of his dictation in the cornerstone of a house in Nauvoo,
Illinois, in 1841, but that sacred text sustained considerable damage over time. Interestingly, the LDS Church Historian and Recorder notes that the auctioned printer’s manuscript is the earliest surviving copy of about 72 percent of the Book of Mormon
text, as only about 28 percent of the earlier dictation copy survived decades of storage in a cornerstone in Nauvoo, Illinois.
Another world record smashed just after
the publication of Library World Records 3rd edition published in 2017, was the world record for the most expensive book auction.
The founding text of the Mormon Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints written by Joseph Smith sold for $35 million.
Image Copyright Mormon Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Most Expensive Book (modern book, e.g. via Amazon, GoogleBooks, iBooks, Kobo etc)
New Facts
While it is quite obvious that rare books and manuscripts (listed in List 207 and most written before the 20th century) will be very expensive and remain the most expensive printed documents, there are many modern books or
at least books written in the 20th century and this century that will require you have deep pockets in order to purchase it from Amazon and other book sellers.
On page 225 (list 208) of Library World Records 3rd edition,
I produced a detailed list of the most expensive books that could be purchased from bookstores (online or bricks and mortar stores).
Currently on Amazon, the most expensive book on sale is 103 Amazing Facts About The Black Indian of The Western Hemisphere Outlined by
Whanstacanah Kanyon. It sells for a wallet-busting $250,000!!
EXTRA FACT:
While you need to attend a book auction at places like Sotheby's and Christie's to be a lucky buyer of an expensive book purchase,
during the days Sotheby's and Christie's are not open for auctions, if you are a rich librarian or bookworm with money to burn on books
you can pop into a rare book seller or antiquarian and spend money like there is no tomorrow. Abebooks is an popular antiquarian store in the U.S. Among three
eye-watering books to purchase at Abebooks are:
1. The Founders of the Western World: A History of Greece and Rome (1st edition) by Michael Grant. It sells for $700,011.
2. The Coverdale Bible (1st edition). It sells for $695,000.
3. The Federalist (1st edition) by Alexander Hamilton et al. It sells for $450,000.
The most famous book and most expensive childrens book sold in 2016 by Abebooks was
Winnie The Pooh (1st edition) by A.A. Milne. It sold for $10,000 in summer 2016. Meanwhile the
the most expensive novels sold in 2017 by Abebooks were
To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee. It sold for $16,000. and
A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh. It sold for $16,500. Finally the
most expensive history book sold in 2017 by Abebooks was
Geographical, Historical, Chronological, Political, and Physical Description of the Empire of China by Jean Baptise du Halde, a French Jesuit historian. It sold for $19,770.
Its original French title is Description Géographique, Historique, Chronologique, Politique, et Physique de l'Empire de la Chine et de la Tartarie Chinoise.
Another world record smashed just after
the publication of Library World Records 3rd edition published in 2017, was the world record for the most expensive book on Amazon.
103 Amazing Facts About The Black Indian of The Western Hemisphere Outlined by
Whanstacanah Kanyon sells for a wallet-busting $250,000.
List 207. EXTRA BONUS ENTRY. New Facts Most expensive library in the world.
Okay, we now know the most expenive book in the world, how about the most expensive library?
I am not talking about the library with the most expensive library budget in the world (see List 112 or page 110 and list 9 or page 14 in
Library World Records 3rd edition), neither am I talking about the library building that cost the most to construct (type $ in the search
menu of the Amazon Kindle eBook edition of Library World Records 3rd edition and it will include the list of libraries with the building costs such as
the $320 million cost for building the new Library of Birmingham in Britain).
I am
refering to the most expensive entry fee charged by a library anywhere in the world.
According to Forbes magazine, a newly opened bookstore (December 2016) in Russia, known as
Book Capella, charges visitors around $120 to enter the library!! And that is just for 4 hours. If you want to stay longer, you need to pay another $120!
Housed in a Gothic-styles building and based in the city of St Petersburg, Book Capella has over 6,400 exotic books and is owned by publishing house Alfaret.
The library has a number of thematic rooms, including the Book of Wars and the Book of Travels. Alfaret
says that the Book Capella is primarily aimed at its clients, collectors, and professional historians.
Its motto is a phrase by famous librarian, Jorge Luis Borges: “I have always imagined paradise as a library.”
Russia's Book Capella, is the most expensive library in the world. It charges visitors around $120 to enter the library, and
that is just for 4 hours. If you want to stay longer, you need to pay another $120. Image Copyright Book Capella.
List 227. The Largest Bookstores around the World.
New Facts: Amazon Bookstore
On pages to 232 to page 246 (List 227) of Library World Records 3rd edition, I compiled an impressive list of over 200 largest bookstores
worldwide in the Americas, Africa, Asia and Europe. The splendid photographs shown in each of the 3 editions of Library World Records total over
37 photographs with Kinokuniya bookstore in Tokyo, Japan (3rd edition);
and, Hugendubel bookshop in Munich, Germany (2nd edition)and Barnes & Noble bookstore in New York City, USA (1st edition), among my favourite photos of
bookstores around the world. I also bring to the readers attention to curious case of Amazon. Between 1995 and 2015, the only way to buy books (and eBooks) from Amazon, was to order it online through its Amazon Kindle store. From 2016, Amazon began opening bricks and mortar stores for the first time, albeit only in the U.S. at the moment.
The first store was opened obviously in Amazon's home town of Seattle. In May 2017, Amazon opened its first brick and mortar store in the largest city in the USA:
New York City. There are about 12 Amazon bookstores in the U.S. at the moment.
This is one of several Amazon bricks and mortar stores, where you can buy books as an alternative to online purchase. Image Copyright, Amazon.
World Records for Library Buildings
List 237. First library building to use extensive electrical lighting
New Facts: Electricity in Libraries
In page 252 in Library World Records 3rd edition, we learn when and how electricity was used for the first time in libraries
around the world from the 1800s. Before the 1800s, lamps was the only way to illuminate a library in daytime (if the sun was low) and night time.
Since lamps were filled with easily combustible gasoline or paraffin (kerosene), it is understandable why big and small libraries
(with so much paper books) easily caught fire on a daily or weekly basis before the 1800s!! Other ways a library easily caught fire was excessive
smoking of cigars or cigarettes in the library everyday!!!, as was common before and after the 1800s. Cigars or cigarettes have been
banned in the libraries in the U.K. since 2007, following the 2006 Health Act. But some libraries took their own unilateral ban before the Act came into law.
List 238. Tallest Library Building New Facts
On pages 252 to 253 of Library World Records 3rd edition, I listed the tallest library buildings in the world. The first library to measure more than
400 feet tall in height was revealed in Authumn (Fall) 2017 by the Indonesian Press. The brand new 24-story National Library of Indonesia
located in Central Jakarta was officially opened by Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo on September 14 2017. Its official height was given by the
Indonesian goverment as 413 feet tall. It is known locally in the Malay language as "Perpustakaan Nasional Republik Indonesia" All the previous world
record holders of the tallest libraries worldwide, listed in Library World Records 3rd edition were all under 400 feet tall.
In 2017, the world record for the tallest library in the world was smashed! You can read about the previous world
record holders of the tallest libraries worldwide in pages 252 to 253 of Library World Records 3rd edition. Another record set by the library
was the largest library building in Asia by area, as it measures 548,066 square feet. Pages 254 to 258 of Library World Records 3rd edition lists the
largest library buildings by area around the world.
Image Copyright The Jakarta Post newspaper.
List 238. Tallest Library Building
Also on pages 252 to 253 of Library World Records 3rd edition, I mentioned that in 2016, Guinness World Records had
also given a special award to the Marriott Hotel Library in Shanghai, China. Have a guess what the award was for, OR visit page 253 in the book.
Image Copyright Agoda.
List 247. Most Fascinating Library Buildings
New Facts
On pages 258 to 287 of Library World Records 3rd edition, I once again revisited fascinating library buildings.
As we may appreciate, library buildings are nowadays as fascinating as their book collections.
Often the appearance of a building outside gives us some insight of what to expect inside.
What really makes a library building fascinating? The size of the building, the shape of the building, the age of the building?
Perhaps the architecture of the building is groundbreaking, or perhaps it is simply a very expensive building!
Back in 2003 and again in 2006 and 2014/2015 during research work for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd editions of the book respectively, I sent out e-mails
to several Internet-based bulletin boards for librarians around the world, asking for a vote on the most fascinating library buildings in the world
they had visited or seen at home or abroad. The categories voted for were:
1. Most fascinating national library buildings.
2. Most fascinating university library buildings.
3. Most fascinating public library buildings.
4. Most fascinating special library buildings.
The results for the summer 2003, summer 2006 and summer 2014/2015 votes on the most fascinating library buildings in the world,
with several photographs of all the winning library buildings voted for, were published respectively in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd editions of
Library World Records .
The 2014/2015 votes were the most diverse of the three periods of voting (votes this time were for libraries in Africa, Asia, Europe and North and
South America). There was one particular library voted repeatedly for in 2015, whose photograph arrived very very late for inclusion in the new book.
It was the photograph for the votes for the famous private library of American
entrepreneur Jay Walker. His magnificient library, built in 2002 is also called The Walker Library of the History of Human Imagination. It has just over
51,000 books and manuscripts.
The Walker Library of the History of Human Imagination is an
amazing private library building. Highlights of the library building include an architectural design based on graphic artist Maurits Cornelis
Escher’s famous staircase sketches. Entrepreneur Jay Walker was quoted as saying that he built the library
"to celebrate humanity’s intellectual and emotional adventure of discovery." Warning: don't include a visit to the spectacular library
for your 2018 summer holidays: his library is, sadly, not open to the public. Image Copyright Medgadget Inc.
List 127. Most Fascinating Library Building New Facts Most Beautiful Library Buildings in the USA.
While all the fascinating library buildings
listed pages 133 to 155 in Library World Records 3rd edition were provided by votes from librarians,
what about the library buildings that have been selected as amazing by architects??
Well very few national professional institutes or academies worldwide for architects provide annual data on the best designed library buildings in their countries,
however the U.S.A. does have a regular list. The American Institute of Architects or AIA provides a regular list called the AIA 150 (www.aia150.org).
Of the 150 magnifcient buildings listed in the United States as outstanding, only 11 libraries make the list. They are:
1. Library of Congress, Washington D.C.
2. Crane Library, Quincy, Maryland.
3. New York Public Library, New York City.
4. University of Pennsylvania, Fisher Fine Arts Library, Philadelphia.
5. Ames Library, North Easton, Maryland
6. Salt Lake City Public Library, Utah.
7. Philips Exeter Academy Library, New Hampshire.
8. Harold Washington Library Center, Chicago.
9. Boston Public Library, Masachusetts.
10. Seattle Public Library, Washington. and
11. Los Angeles Central Library, California.
In total 8 public libraries, 1 national library and 2 academic libraries made the list.
Image Copyright DeviantArt.
The University of Pennsylvania, Fisher Fine Arts Library building in the city of Philadelphia, shown above is the only university library that made
the American Institute of Architects hot 150!! I am looking for similar lists from national professional institutes or academies for architects in Asia and Europe.
If you know of any, do drop me a line. email given below.
World Records for Library Catalogs, Databases and Technology
World Records for Library and Information Science Organizations
List 381. The 345 Largest Libraries in the World New Facts
On pages 335 to 348 of Library World Records 3rd edition, we are presented with a summarised list of the 345 largest libraries around
the world with at least 2 million books. I have a much more detailed examination of the largest libraries at the begining of the book at pages 14 to 113.
These 345 largest libraries in the world have a grand total of a little over 2 billion books. Since the world population is over 6 billion, it sadly means the
grand total of a little over 2 billion books represents
less than one book per person in the world, at the moment.
Finally.......at the beginning of all three editions of Library World Records , I have included
three major philosophical quotes (on books or libraries) by notable people from all over the world, both past and present.
I had originally found 18 different powerful quotes in my initial research back in 2002.
After several hours cross referencing each quote, to ensure I had the real original author of the quote,
I shortlisted 8 of them to be used for the first three editions of Library World Records.
All 8 quotes will make you pause for a moment and reflect on the way books, librarians and libraries have influenced mankind in many ways directly and indirectly, such as literacy.
Eight intellectuals chosen were: Francis Bacon, Marcus Cicero, Wolfgang von Goethe, Theodore Parker,
Salman Rushdie, Rene Descartes, Victor Hugo and Mark Twain.
To discover the exact quotes stated by each of the listed individuals above, you will need all three editions of the book!!
URL: www.lwrw.org
UPDATES FOR DECEMBER 2018 Next update JANUARY 2019.
LIBRARY WORLD RECORDS
At
last a reference book
that
is only about library and book superlatives.
Image Copyright DeviantArt.