Follow the collection
Villa of the Papyri, then and now
Start at the original library, follow the surviving objects to their present holders, and open their digitized pages side by side. Every transition stays attached to its source.
01 · Origin
The original library
PHerc. 1667 virtually unwrapped and read in full, 22 columns, June 2026; villa mostly still buried
Enter the library record and any real or reconstructed views
Use this photo
Bronze runner from the Villa of the Papyri, Naples museum. Photo: NatalyaSole, CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/), via Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bronze_runner_from_the_Villa_of_the_Papyri_(Herculaneum).jpgDownload 1920px
What happened here
- 79Vesuvius eruption buries villa and library under ~20 m of ash · source
- 1750Villa found 1750 by well-diggers; first scrolls 1752 · source
- 1750Tunnel excavations under Alcubierre and Weber, halted 1765 · source
- 1986Villa relocated through an ancient well · source
- 19901990s dig reveals two lower floors with frescoes in situ · source
Where the books are now
Surviving items, by the institution that holds them today. Each line has its source and how well it is proven.
- Biblioteca nazionale Vittorio Emanuele III Naples, Italy
Bulk of the surviving papyri, in the Office of Herculaneum papyri
- Institut de France Paris, France
Six rolls given to Napoleon in 1802-03 Count: 6
- Bodleian Library Oxford, United Kingdom
Four unrolled papyri presented by George IV in 1810 Count: 4
- British Library London, United Kingdom
Most of the other unrolled papyri given to George IV in 1810
03 · Survival
The present holders
- Biblioteca nazionale Vittorio Emanuele IIINaples, Italy
Bulk of the surviving papyri, in the Office of Herculaneum papyri.
- Institut de FranceParis, France
Six rolls given to Napoleon in 1802-03, 6 items.
- Bodleian LibraryOxford, United Kingdom
Four unrolled papyri presented by George IV in 1810, 4 items.
- British LibraryLondon, United Kingdom
Most of the other unrolled papyri given to George IV in 1810.
04 · Comparison
One desk, many surviving copies
Choose two holders, then turn their pages together. The desk reads IIIF v2 and v3 manifests cached at build time; images still come from the holding institutions.
Two readable holder manifests are required for comparison. Verified manifests currently available: 0.
- Herculaneum papyri (bulk of the collection)Philodemus and others1st century BCEP.Herc. seriescatalogue record
- PHerc. Paris. 4 (text read 2023)1st century BCEPHerc. Paris. 4catalogue record
- PHerc. 1667 (Scroll 4)1st century BCEPHerc. 1667catalogue record
- Oxford Facsimiles of the Herculaneum PapyriJohn Hayter (copies)1802-1806catalogue record