Within the confines of the British Museum, a message contained in papyrus from the period of Ramesses II, 13th century BC, whispers, "Man disappears, his body returns to dust, his fellows become earth, but the book perpetuates the memory of him. Better a book than a solid house or a temple in the far West, or a stronghold or a stele erected in a sanctuary.... The wise prophets have disappeared, and their names would be forgotten if their writings did not preserve their memory."

Chester Beatty IV Papyrus (verso)

Louis Godart, former cultural advisor to three Italian Presidents, expressed his resonance with this message during the fourth dialogue of the China-Europe-America Museums Cooperation Initiative: written records can transcend the passage of time and the rise and fall of empires, conveying eternal memories to the world.

Louis Godart's full speech

After Ramesses II, the pharaohs of Egypt continued to uphold the tradition of rescuing human thought from oblivion through libraries and museums. A thousand years after that unknown Egyptian scribe penned these wonderful words on papyrus, Ptolemy I and Ptolemy II, the Ptolemaic pharaohs constructed the Library of Alexandria in the 3rd century BC The library housed over 700,000 papyri and was paired with the Museum of Alexandria.

Artistic rendering of the Library of Alexandria based on archaeological evidence by a 19th-century German artist

It was not only the Egyptian pharaohs who deeply understood the importance of memory and books. Beyond the Nile Valley, other civilizations were also captivated by the charm and magical power of books. Roman emperors Trajan, Caracalla, and Hadrian of Athens all built grand libraries to preserve and pass on the culture and wisdom of their empires.

Remains of the Hadrian's Library

The preservation of memory is not solely the privilege of history's victors; it also guides the destiny of the vanquished. In Israel's history, Simon bar Kokhba, known as the "Son of the Star," led a rebellion (132-135 CE) against Rome and Emperor Hadrian, but was ultimately defeated. The rebels, unwilling to submit and unafraid of death, stipulated only one condition for their surrender: the preservation of the Torah.

“In his eyes, the teaching of the ancient Torah ensured, much more than a blind and hopeless revolt, the survival of the people who believe only in the ethics of the soul.” After three years of fighting and tens of thousands of deaths, Israel realized that to protect and save their memory, they should rely not on the sword, but on books.

The Torah, also known as the Pentateuch, is the most important part of the Jewish scriptures.

Returning to the present, Louis Godart reiterated the important role of museums and libraries as temples of human memory: “Only memory in this world torn by wars and doubts, can open, thanks to the book, and thanks to the museums, the doors to a future of knowledge and serenity.”

People without memory freeze to death, wrote French historian Georges Dumézil. Thus, Louis Godart, in his exploration of the future of museums and libraries, called out, “If we want to spare our civilizations the long winter of death, we must teach the younger generation that the custodians of memory are museums and books.”