Catalog of the Library Depositories

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Gesin
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Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2018 11:54 pm

Catalog of the Library Depositories

Post by Gesin » Mon Aug 29, 2022 10:22 am

While Initiates will have an intimate understanding of the different Library Depositories due to their chores of re-shelving books, others may find this reference to the different Depositories useful when researching and RPing as I do.

~Gesin Sedai

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First - History.
Second - Geography and Maps. Cartography.
Third - Biograghies, Journals, Correspondance Archive.
Fourth - Botany. Herbs, plants, flowers, trees.
Fifth - (Geology?) and Astronomy.
Sixth - (Military history, tactics, and battle records?)
Seventh - Poetry, art, fiction.
Eighth - One Power. Prophecies.
Ninth - Arithmatic.
Tenth - (Literature?)
Eleventh - (Accounting?)
Twelvth - Treaties and Law


Center of the First Depository
Tall bookcases of a dark, polished wood line the walls of this long, oval
room. One of the biggest depositories in the library, the First Depository
is dedicated entirely to history. Several sliding bookcases have been
installed on the center floor, a large, spoked wheel set into each,
allowing them to be slowly rotated to open an aisle. A small warning sign
is printed above the wheels. Each shelf has a large plaque set near the
top, with a series of numbers that presumably details its contents.

The Second Depository
A sign overhead identifies the 'Geography and Maps' section of the library.
Several very high, very large desks are available upon which to spread out
a map. Each desk also doubles as storage for maps, possessing a plethora of
narrow, labeled drawers. Maps from Saldaea to the Aiel Waste, from the
Blight-claimed nation of Malkier to Windbiter's finger, are available for
perusal. Atop each desk sit a variety of implements, including several lead
weights to anchor the maps, rulers, protractors, and other measuring tools.

The Third Depository
Tall bookcases of dark, polished wood line both walls of the long oval
room, filled with an assortment of books. Most of the titles near at hand
seem to be biographies of diverse personages- kings, queens, Amyrlin Seats,
and famous generals. There appear to be several diaries and ledgers
containing research notes from numerous Aes Sedai as well as several boxes
containing correspondence from various people of note. There even appears
to be a memoir of a Lord Captain of the Children of the Light!

The Fourth Depository
A prodigious collection of low, wheeled book carts nearly block one of the
passages between the bookcases which stand in the center of this long, oval
chamber. The carts seem to stocked with titles that pertain to the subject
of botany. The books that line the shelves nearby are studies and drawings
of herbs, trees, and other plants. A few open books on stands have both
sketches of plants, as well as an assortment of pressed flowers and leaves.

The Fifth Depository
Labyrinthine rows of books extend in several directions from the entrance
to this oval room. Passages between the walls of books are open to the
north. The books on the shelves near the entrance of the depository have
titles relating to the study of the physical world and the night's sky.

The Sixth Depository
Tall bookcases of dark polished wood reach all the way from the ground,
past a cast iron walkway on the second level and up to the top of the wall
of this large, oval room. A cornice carved with avendesora, bonsai, cedar,
holly, juniper, oak, olive and redwood leaves crowns the wall, above which
a flat domed ceiling arches, frescoes of battle scenes painted on it.

The Seventh Depository
The depository containing poetry and fiction is surprisingly large for a
learning institution. It would seem that the preservation of stories and
art is as great a pursuit of the Aes Sedai as is the preservation of other
knowledge. A copy of what must be a popular read, 'The Travels of Jain
Farstrider' sits in a bookcase on the central floor, nearest the door.

The Eighth Depository
The suspended iron catwalk joins with the bookshelves approximately fifteen
spans off the ground. The flat-domed ceiling of the library arches down to
meet the top of those shelves only a few spans above the catwalk. Several
small signs point to the reason the books on these shelves have been
restricted. One shelf is labeled 'Forbidden Weaves,' while another is noted
'On the Subject of Saidin,' and a third very large section concerns the
Prophecies of the Dragon. The books all seem to be on the subject of the
One Power. A cast iron fence and gate close off all access to the south.

The Ninth Depository
This is the smallest of the twelve depositories of the Great Library of Tar
Valon, dedicated to arithmetic. The room is long and oval in shape, with a
flattened dome for a ceiling. Rows of wooden shelves are on the floor and
the circumference of the room is covered by tall bookcases of polished dark
wood. Narrow metal walkways four paces above the ground and ladders on
wheels allow for access to the tomes on higher shelves.

The Tenth Depository
This long oval room has bookcases of dark polished wood lining the walls
that reach all the way up to a flattened-domed ceiling. A quick glance
confirms that the tomes on the shelves have been sorted by the name of the
author and title of the work. Hanging lanterns which contain the flame in a
glass case hang from the ceiling, in order to minimize the risk of fire.

The Eleventh Depository
The floor of this room is almost entirely visible between the scattered
bookcases that sit in the middle of the long, oval room. A swirl of seven
colors converges in a white Flame of Tar Valon in the center of the floor.
The books sitting in the tall bookcases seem to be sorted according to
type, with ledgers of accounting occupying a shelf near the entrance.

The Twelfth Depository
This depository is home to a collection of works that appears to be partly
in scroll form. Some of the bookcases in this room are noticably different
than in the other depositories, consisting of diamond shaped recepticles,
each containing several rolls of paper. The scrolls are all copies of
various treaties between nations. Each nation has its own section, some of
which are sparsely populated, such as the Borderland countries. The section
on the nations of Tarabon and Arad Doman, however, contains a plethora of
scrolls. Other bookcases in the room contain tomes on the subject of law.