#37: The Map of Knowledge - A History in Seven Cities: Interview with Violet Moller

On Episode #37 of the Book Talk Today podcast we are joined by Violet Moller.  Violet is an independent historian with a particular interest in the history of ideas and how knowledge has been transmitted through the centuries. She has a Ph.D on the libraries in Early Modern Britain and is host of the Travels Through Time history podcast which asks a wide range of brilliant historians which year they would chose if they could travel back in time. Today we will be discussing her book, 'The Map of Knowledge: How Classical Ideas Were Lost and Found: A History of Seven Cities.' We discussed the library of Alexandria, Baghdad, Cordoba, Toledo, Salerno, Palermo and Venice in relation to the transition of knowledge from 500 to 1500.  Timestamps [0:00] - Intro [1:07] - Violet's journey to writing this book [6:27] - The founding of Alexandria and its library [11:38] - How the library of Alexandria disappeared [13:30] - The city of Baghdad [18:27] - Knowledge and the relationship between the rich and poor [23:17] - The city of Cordaba [28:54] - The city of Toledo [34:36] - The loss of knowledge through conflict [36:13] - The latinization of Arab knowledge [42:47] - Cities in Italy [48:15] - The impact of the Gutenberg Press [52:15] - The main takeaway from the book [54:34] - If we were to return to any period of history… [59:52] - Outro Visit our website - www.booktalktoday.com