Great Library of Khomedasht

The House of Knowledge

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Settlements and Fortresses


K-L


Khomedasht


Great Library of Khomedasht}

It's an endless sea of scrolls, parchments and tablets. It's like everything worth knowing, and many things that aren't worth learning, are in the same place. You could spend a lifetime reading through everything and you'd never even dent it!
— A visitor to the library

The Great Library of Khomedasht in Khomedasht, Sarzamin is the largest and most significant library in the known world. The decision to construct the library was made by the Kanodite Great King Kambiz in 225BSF and construction was completed during the lifetime of his son Amavand III by 219BSF. The libraries collection grew quickly through aggressive purchases and requisitions from smaller libraries throughout the empire and the generous patronage given by the monarchy. At its height, the library had a collection of over 300,000 texts covering nearly every available topic. Whilst the library was primarily constructed to house the works collected and created, its secondary purpose was to showcase the wealth of the Kanodite Empire. It was finely decorated with marble, statues, murals and mosaics and held several rooms that could be used for dining or political affairs. To maintain and grow the library, scholars are hired and paid from the imperial treasury. These men are called the 'knowledge seekers' or the Daneshi. In the first few centuries of its history, the library was held in high esteem and exceptionally well funded, revered by scholars and academics for the wealth of knowledge that it contained. When the empire's golden age ended in 118BSF the Great Library was overlooked whilst civil and military matters took precedence. The decay of the library reached its greatest extent in the years following Sunfall. Any valuable metals within the library were melted down, including the bronze statues and ironworks and many scrolls were burnt for heat. Once firmly in control, the Dobarid Great Kings have invested heavily in rebuilding the library and its collection of works, particularly focussing on political and historical works. Whilst the number of scrolls contained within the library has not yet reached the scale obtained under the Kanodite Empire, the texts held currently held contain vast amounts of knowledge.

Etymology

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The library is named after the city that it is found in, Khomedasht. It is known by a few other names, in particular, the House of Knowledge and the Daneshi Palace, although these are more uncommon. The latter is typically derogatory and is a critique of the high standard of living afforded to the Daneshi Scholars.

History

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The Great Library of Khomedasht was founded in 225BSF and was completed by 219BSF. In its early history, the library was exceptionally well funded and the collection grew rapidly. During the waning days of the Kanodite Empire, the library found itself pushed to the margins as cultural pursuits gave way to military and political endeavours. In the aftermath of Sunfall, many of the texts were burnt for heat or sold cheaply for materials or food. Under the Dobarids, the library has seen a concerted effort to be re-grown and has retained its pre-eminence in the academic world.

Kanodite Period

The concept for the Great Library of Khomedasht was conceived by Kambiz, the Kanodite Great King from 248 to 221BSF. Kambiz envisaged himself as a scholar and a patron of the arts and spent heavily on cultural pursuits, encouraging academics, playwrights and philosophers to come to the imperial capital, Khomedasht. He offered generous gifts, including a home in the city, for those who were accepted into his court. Eventually, it was decided to create a complex for the storage of the works created and showcase the results of Kambiz's pursuits. Unfortunately, Kambiz died before the construction works were completed and the Great Library was opened by his son and successor to the throne, Amavand III in 219BSF. Amavand decorated the library lavishly and funded the creation of the Daneshi Scholars who were tasked with curating, creating and categorising the texts within the library. To lead the Daneshi and advise the Great King personally, a Head Librarian was appointed based on academic merit to ensure that the academic and cultural efforts continued as smoothly as possible. The Deshani would be funded by each successive Kanodite Great King.

In here will be the knowledge of the world, from the farthest reaches of my empire and even further still. In the pursuit of knowledge, we please the gods with every step and it is with their blessing, that I rule over their world.
— Amavand III at the opening feast of the Great Library of Khomedasht

Under House Baati, the sixth royal family to rule over the Kanodite Empire, the funding afforded to the library was cut and it was decreed that only military and political works should be focussed on. The Ferhengua, one of two halves of the library and focussed predominately on cultural works such as plays or poetry, was effectively closed and shuttered with many works being lost or rotting without upkeep. The Deshani were halved in number and the budget afforded to them to purchase or copy works essentially dried up.

Although this state of affairs only endured whilst the Baatian Dynasty ruled the Kanodite Empire, the Great Library took a long period of time to recover from the focus demanded of it from the Baatians kings. The task of rebuilding the libraries depleted collection and rebooting the wider academic efforts fell to the Head Librarians. Unfortunately, the title was increasingly given as a political reward to those loyal to the monarchy instead of academic strength leading to sycophantical tendencies rather than the pursuit of knowledge. The Great Library remained functional up to Sunfall where it was abandoned to focus on, in the early years on survival, and then re-building the agricultural and governmental systems to support a state. When the Kanodite Empire finally collapsed in 6ASF, the bronze statues that had adorned the library had long been smelted down to make tools, weapons or to barter for food or protection. Many of the scrolls in the library had been looted or used for kindling to survive the long winters.

Dobarid Period

As one of the major successor states of the Kanodite Empire, and the inheritors of Khomedasht, the Dobarid Empire strives to portray itself as a continuation of its predecessor. This mentality is also applied to the Great Library of Khomedasht which has seen great interest from the Dobarid Great Kings. Primarily, as a way to showcase their wealth and prestige although some Great Kings have taken an academic interest too in an attempt to find the information that has been lost since Sunfall. Dobarid Deshani are routinely sent out with princely sums to find, purchase or copy any texts that they can find in an attempt to rebuild the libraries collections to what it once was.

Function

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The Great Library of Khomedasht is designed to house the the ever-growing collection of knowledge collected on the orders of the Kanodite Empire and now the Dobarid Empire. The majority of the library is designed to hold the scrolls and parchments collected by the Daneshi Scholars. Numerous side rooms are used to translate and copy texts that have been collected over time and some rooms are reserved for scholars to read or advise in private. It is common for the Daneshi Scholars to charge for sharing information if specific advice is needed although the library itself is open to all.

Together with its scholarly intentions, the library has been created to showcase the wealth of the city and its monarch. Feasts, plays and readings of history are popular affairs at the library, particularly for visiting diplomats or those in the service of the Great King. It is also not uncommon for the playwrights and writers in the city to come to the library to find inspiration for their work or submit their own for safekeeping. Historians and scholars across the known world also travel to visit the library to support their own research and writings.

In here are thousands of stories from across the world. Shall we hear about the rise of the Kanodites? The burning of the Sunfallen Sea? The pirate Aplaa Libaya? All their lives and histories are here!
— A Daneshi Scholar at a feast hosted by the Great King

If approved by the Great King, works can be copied and gifted too, another opportunity to showcase the wealth available to the monarch. This is typically only done for diplomatic or political purposes. Alternatively, practical works, for example, military, legal, architectural scrolls, are often copied to be shared around the empire to ensure the necessary information is available.

Collection

At its zenith, the Great Library held roughly 300,000 different texts covering a range of topics. A list of every text in the library, the Keteb, is maintained by the Head Librarian and is considered by some to be the exhaustive list of academic works in the known world. Organised by date order, it is also a valuable tool to see how rapidly the collection has grown since the construction of the Great Library.

If it's worth knowing, then it's in the Great Library of Khomedasht. If it's not in the library, then it's not worth knowing!
— A common maxim shared by scholars and historians

The most prized piece of work contained with the library is the Kanodaria, the most complete and in-depth history of the Kanodite Empire. Originally a text to extol the glory of the Kanodites and frame all of their actions in the greatest possible light, it has increasingly become an example of what can be achieved if academia and research are adequately funded and supported. The text contains a biography of every Kanodite Great King and is the main source for Kanodite History.

As the library continues to wane in both statue and scale, the Denashi hold the Kanodaria in high regard and as a reminder of what once was achieved through academic rigour and what could be achieved if the same policy was pursued once more.

Architecture

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The Great Library is predominantly composed of two main buildings designed to house the collected literature and works. Both face outwards to the street and are connected by a garden and two colonnades, at the front and rear. The northern building, known as the Elema, is home to the academic works that have been collected. The southern building, the Ferhengua, is where the plays, comedies and tragedies are safely stored and are where any social events are held. Within each of the two buildings, the western and eastern walls are divided into smaller rooms which can be used for many different purposes as required.

Behind the Elema and Ferhengua are the administrative buildings needed for the Great Library to function. This includes warehouses for parchment, ink and construction materials, the residence of the Head Librarian, sleeping quarters for the Deshani and a fully stocked kitchen and pantry. The entire complex is dotted with several statues showing historical and mythological figures. In the centre of the garden connecting the Elema and the Ferhengua are a pair of bronze statues; one of the Kanodite King Kambiz, who founded the library, and the other of the first Dobarid Great King X.

^{An overhead view of the Great Library of Khomedasht}