Koraes Library possesses a rich collection of books that used to belong to some of the island’s most prominent men. These men managed to gather some extremely precious volumes at a time where books were expensive and hard to acquire.

These books cover a wide range of scientific fields, which reflect both the professional activity and the intellectual interests of their collectors. Some of the books are rare editions, which date back to the first years of book publishing, and are in excellent condition.

The library’s most important collections are the following: the Adamantios Koraes Collection (3,000 volumes), the Ioannis Adreadis Collection (4,300 volumes), the Georgios Mihalinos Collection (2,180 volumes), the Alexandros Votsanis Collection (2,065 volumes), the Ioannis Vouros Collection (1,114 volumes), and the Nikolaos Petrokokkinos Collection (930 volumes). Our library also benefited from other donations from Geortzis and Tarsi Dromokaïtis, Alexandros Pahnos, Leonis Kalvokoresis, Georgios Photeinos, Ioakim Phoropoulos, Konstantinos Amantos and others. Some of Chios’ most prominent personalities donated their entire personal libraries. This is the case of Philippos Argenti (2,000 volumes), Georgios Theotokas (4,000 volumes) and, most recently, Kostas Koukourides. The library’s grantors gave their personal book collections to the library as a token of their love to their homeland and with the view to benefit Chios’ most important cultural institution and future generations.

The Adamantios Koraes Collection

This collection is the pride and joy of our library. Its importance is measured not only by its volume, namely its 3,000 books, but, most importantly, by the fact that it belonged to one of the most enlightened intellectuals of Modern Greece and the founder of this library. The value of Koraes’ library is also measured by the number and quality of Koreas’ numerous annotations. This collection consists of rare and expensive editions some of which remain in pristine condition. “I donate by entire library to the ‘Gymnasion’ of Chios”, Koraes wrote in his will and testamentary disposition. At the time of Koraes’ death, in 1833, Chios’ Middle School (Gymnasion) was not operational due to the devastation that created the massacre of the islanders by Ottoman troops. Koraes’ books and manuscripts had to travel a lot before finally reaching the island of Chios in 1850. Napoleon’s gift to Koraes holds a prominent position within this collection. It is an edition that dates back to 1809-1822 and provides a detailed description of Egypt.

The Ioannis Adreadis Collection
In 1858, a rich merchant and intellectual from Trieste, Ioannis Andreadis, donated to the Library of the School of Chios his entire book collection, namely 4,331 volumes along with nine luxurious and slick cases. In his handwritten will and testamentary disposition, Andreadis mentioned the following: “[…] In addition, my library comprises almost all of Greek and Latin authors, in excellent editions, as well as French, Italian and German authors, whose books are worth mentioning” (Kavvadas 1933: 266). This collection is valuable not only for historical reasons but mainly because it can be proven extremely useful to researchers interested in exploring its treasures.

The Philippos P. Argenti Collection
Philippos P. Argenti’s personal collection, currently kept in the Director’s office, is an invaluable treasure consisting of 2,000 books, manuscripts, and other prints, all of which are nicely bound together or stored in luxurious cases. Philippos Argenti fortune and intellect, as well as his wide education, encouraged him to spend a considerable amount of time and money travelling to places and visiting archive collections, libraries, bookstores and used book shops to unearth precious items. It is worth mentioning that everything written about Chios or everything produced by writers of Chios for over four centuries, namely between 1500 and 1950, are part of the Argenti collection and are kept in impressive bookcases. The classification of these books, made by Argenti himself, reveals a pioneering view of book cataloguing.The collection is a most valuable too l to any researcher interested in the various stages of Chios’ history and civilization.

The Georgios M. Theotokas Collection (1905-1966)
In 1971, the family of Georgios Theotokas, a poet and a politician from Chios, donated to Koraes Library the latter’s collection, desk and bookcases where he kept his books. His collection, currently kept in the homonymous room, is made of 4,000 volumes, some of which contain handwritten dedications. The books in this collection are mainly literary books. Along with their unique usefulness, they are a great addition to our library.

Koraes library’s holds several other collections, namely

Manuscripts Old and rare editions Newspapers, journals and periodicals Memento, heirlooms, medals and coins Sea shell collection and a collection of metals from the island of Chios Historic and topographic maps

Manuscripts
One of the most invaluable treasures of the Central public and historic library of Chios is its manuscript collection. Its worth is measured not only by the number of manuscripts (the Kavvadas collection alone consists of 1673 manuscripts) but also by the importance of their content and that of their authors. Koraes’ manuscripts are the jewel of this collection. They consist of translations, annotations and commentaries (mainly of a linguistic, grammatical, historical, mythological and geographical nature) on ancient authors, medieval texts and other manuscripts which belonged to Koraes. This collection also contains dictionaries, anthologies, notes and statements, Koraes autobiography as well as theological writings. Finally there is an impressive collection of letters written by G. Koressis, Ioakim Phoropoulos, Neophytos Vamvas, Kall. Kreatsoulas, Alexander Vlastos, Alexandros Mavrokordatos, Andreas Mamoukas, I. Andreadis, G. Sourias, K. Kondos, Ioannis Psycharis, K. Karatheodoris, Gr. Photeinos and many others.
Additionally, the manuscript collection holds important documents from the Patriarchate of Constantinople and the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, the Ephorate of Orthodox Schools of Chios, the Consulate, several key institutions of the island (such as the Council of Elders, the Hospital Committee, the Leprosarium of Chios, the Court of First Instance and the Court of Commerce), etc.
The manuscripts belonging to the Council of Elders as well as the notary codes of various villages (the library currently possesses some 100 notary codes whereas the Historical Archives of Chios possess another 1,200 codes) merit a special note. The Historical Archives are also housed in the library’s building and have one of the oldest codes, i.e. the St. George of Sykousi Code, which extends from 1518 to 1846). Notary codes are made of wills and testamentary dispositions, contracts and agreements, balance sheets, notices of sale, renting agreements, bonds, powers of attorney, receipts, insurance policies, etc. All these documents provide valuable information regarding the island’s self-governance during the ottoman occupation, the history and evolution of law, agricultural production, money circulation, household economics, the use of langue, place-naming, etc. This is an unparallel historical source for anyone interested in matters pertaining to the public and private life of the islanders and demonstrates Greek continuity on the island.

Old and rare editions
Koraes Library was fortunate to receive donations from several eminent intellectuals and wealthy merchants of Chios. These donations consisted of books, some of which are old and rare editions. Koraes’ books, dating before 1833, that is the year of his death, are a priceless collection. The oldest of all books is the history of medicine, written in Latin. This book was published in 1493, namely a few years after the invention of modern book printing. The I. Andreadis collection constitutes an impressive selection of rare editions of ancient and Byzantine authors. St. Kavvadas catalogue mentions 53 books published prior to 1600, 100 volumes published during the 17th century and 367 books published during the 18th century. Another priceless collection is that of Philip Argenti. Researchers will discover 33 books published during the 16th century, 122 books that date back to the 17th century, 118 books that were published during the 18th century and 694 books printed during the 19th century. These books are related to the island of Chios and provide direct or indirect references to it. This is particularly true in the case of books written by people who visited Chios in order to discover the beauties of the island. These titles amount to an impressive 205 books, some of which are extremely rare and unique titles that bear the coat of arms of reputable publishing houses. To quote Argenti: “most of the books that belong to the collection dedicated to Chios are extremely rare, were published during the century of the invention of [book] printing and were made available by famous houses which made history in the printing and publishing business.” [Our translation] The books’ binding is also worth mentioning, mainly because the covers are made of luxurious material and are particularly artistic. These priceless collections need to be preserved and made known publicly. They constitute an invaluable source for researchers and can contribute in promoting science and the arts thus paying tribute to their donators.

Newspapers, journals and periodicals
Newspapers, journals and periodicals make up for another interesting collection. There is an almost complete selection of newspapers and periodicals issued on the island or published elsewhere by people originated from Chios Finally, the collection holds several other publications. It is worth stressing that Chios’ first printing facility was founded in 1819 and was operating from the Historical Middle School of Chios. The first document to have been printed was a newspaper. Well-renowned periodicals, some of which were published for a long time whereas others were short-lived, included the following: Chiakon Mouseion, To Chiakon Imerologion, I Sphinx, To Nisi, I Chiaki Epitheorisi, etc. Among the most important newspapers, one can identify Amalthia (1832-1922) published in Smyrna, Neologos tis Konstantinoupolis, Ethniki, Elpis, Panxhiaki (printed in Chios as of 1908), Nea Chios and others. The library is still in the process of collecting more issues of these newspapers and periodicals because they are an integral part of our contemporary history.

Mementos, heirlooms, medals and coins
Heirlooms and personal items of an unquestionable artistic and historic value are included in the library’s treasures. This particular collection is made of diplomas, medals, distinctions, office equipment, precious miniatures and other objects. All the items are kept in various rooms throughout the library and belonged to eminent public figures and intellectuals such as Adamantios Koraes, Leonis Kalvokoresis, Ioannis Psycharis, Konstantinos Amantos, Georgios Theotokas, the Argenti family and others.
The first flag to have been raised in Chios during its liberation day (on November 11, 1912) as well as a piece of the historical flag of the 23th Regiment of Chios which fought in the 1940 war are among the treasures of this collection. The curious visitor will be happy to discover a porcelain candleholder offered to Koraes by his friends to keep him “company during his sleepless nights of studying” as well as Georgios Theotokas’ ink holder, Psycharis’ clock, and Eustratios Argenti’s Russian silver cross that dates back to the 17th century. Additionally, Koraes Library is the proud owner of Eustratios Argenti medals. Eustratios Argenti was a national hero and a personal friend of Righas Velestinlis. Finally, the collection comprises an ivory-bound bible, a series of miniatures which belonged to the Argenti family, coins engraved with the coat of arms of several Venetian Dons as well as several other mementos of unquestionable historic value.
Finally, the library possesses Sp. Argyropoulos’ coin collection, namely a series of 188 Ancient, Byzantine and more contemporary coins, an 8th century lead stamp and six medals.

Sea shell and coin collections
John Quintana’s Mediterranean sea shell collection was donated to Koraes Library by Quintana’ himself in 1901. Quintana served as Director of the British Telegraph Office of Chios. The collection is kept in a special case located at the Entrance of the library. It represents a rare and beautiful arrangement of species and colours.
At the beginning of the 20th century, G. Kaloutas created a collection of metals from various areas of Chios which he later donated to Koraes Library. Kaloutas also wrote a detailed report on the oryctological make up of Chios. The collection is preserved in two special cases kept in the library’s reading room.

Historic and topographic maps
These maps belong to Philip Argenti’s personal collection and are arranged by subject matter. They are hung at the entrance of the library, along the staircase and the upper floor’s hall way. They refer to the history of Chios and provide a geographical, topographical and historic overview of the island between the 14th and the 19th century. Older maps are handmade or consist of old paintings that offer a topographical depiction of the city of Chios, the castle and Kampos (Chios’ plane). These maps and paintings represent scenes and persons directly linked with the history of the island during the ottoman occupation. The also depict the coat of arms of Chios’ most prominent families. The oil paintings that represent the Massacre of Chios in 1822 are particularly impressive. Their artistic value is enhanced by their magnificent frames. However, the collections’ historical significance is priceless since it provides direct testimony on how the island and its landmarks looked like during the previous centuries. Some of these monuments have been destroyed since.

Our Circulation Desk and Lending Department handle 11,438 volumes and 4,440 library members. This department is divided into two sections: one for the general public and one for kids. Visitors can access the Circulation Desk via Doretheou Proïοu Street.

The general public book collection comprises the following categories:

• Greek and foreign-language literature and poetry; translated literature and poetry
• History
• Psychology
• Theater
• Religion
• Philosophy
• Politics and Political Science
• Sociology
• Biographies
• Fine Arts
• Humanities, etc.

The book collection dedicated to kids comprises the following categories:

• Pre-school books
• Mythology
• Greek and foreign literature for teens; translated literature
• School book companions (primary, middle school, and high school books)

According to our library’s regulation, each member may borrow up to four (4) books for a period of twenty (20) days.

Circulation Desk and Lending Department opening hours:
Monday to Friday from 9 am to 2 pm
Friday evening from 5 pm to 7:30 pm
Saturday from 9 am to 12:30 pm

The Circulation Desk and Lending Department have a computerized system for managing books and lending them to users

In 1973, the Koraes Library put forth the idea to launch a bookmobile initiative in order to increase book access to segments of the population unable visit a library. This service is particularly important to students, elderly people and persons with reduced mobility and other disabilities. It is also beneficial to low income families who, otherwise, would not have the chance to discover the wonderful world of books.

Koraes Central Public Library of Chios currently possesses two buses. The first one travels to the island’s most remote areas and meets the reading and information needs of the elders.

The second bus was acquired through the Third Community Support Framework for Greece and the Second Operational Programme “Education and Basic Vocational Training” of the Greek Ministry of Education under a targeted action aimed at “supporting educational practice and bookmobiles”. Koraes Library second bookmobile became operational in 1999.

Our bookmobile travels around the island visiting primary schools, middle schools as well as high schools. The books packed in our car are carefully catalogued and chosen so that they can be lent to our young visitors. The bookmobile personnel also train students in the local community to search for information. The aim is to bring students into the information society. Since 2008, the bookmobile is permanently located at L. Porfyra Street.

Expected results:

• Address library shortages in remote areas
• Eliminate inequalities within the educational system, especially between big cities and remote areas
• Support the educational process and assist the educators in implementing the Ministry’s detailed educational programme
• Acquaint students with basic library service, the information technology and various ways to access knowledge
• Instruct students how to get to the information they need through various resources
• Ensure indirect access to the island’s public library to remote areas
• Serve users beyond the student community

Expected results:

• Expand the creation of more school libraries by making sure that ethe use of libraries by the general population
• Familiarize users with new technologies
• Introduce public library services to local communities as well as school communities
• Increase the value and use of material and services offered at the Central Public Library of Chios
• Connect school communities with their local communities, the local authorities and grass-root organizations
• Connect school communities with national and international information centres

Direct benefits:

Teachers and students are the ones who can benefit directly from our bookmobile services. Our bus is crisscrossing the countryside to provide primary and secondary schools with the help they need to promote the country’s educational programme

The library’s Information Centre operates from a specially designed room, located across from the Offices of the Holy Metropolis of Chios (entrance via Amantou Street). The creation of the Information Centre was made possible thanks to the Operational Programme “Information Society”, Measure 1.1 Equiping and Networking Schools. This measure falls under the category of Action Line 5, Creating Public Information Centres. The project was co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (up to 75 per cent) and the Greek State through national resources (up to 25 per cent).

The purpose of this centre is to guarantee access to electronic resources on various subject matters, such as education, culture, economic development, etc. The goal is to familiarize users with information technology.

Thanks to the support of the automated processing department of the University of the Aegean and the Directorate for Secondary Education, new infrastructure was created, new equipment was installed and connectivity was established.

Available services

• Web surfing
• Multimedia educational material
• WiFi Hot spot
• PC equipped with basic software (text processing programmes, Excel sheets) and peripherals (such as printing facilities)
• Access to the archives of the Official Gazette of the Hellenic Republic
• Programmes installed on the PCs
• Electronic and audiovisual material
• Programmes and software specially designed for persons with disabilities

Available material

Users can access material from a wide range of topics, such as education, sports, culture and civilization, economic development, leisure and entertainment as well as health, professional orientation, the State and Public Administration.

This material is available through

• The Internet and the World Wide web, which provide access to countless databases.
• The library’s collection of audiovisual material (CD, CDROM and DVDs).
• Special software installed in the centre’s PCs.
• The library’s website.

Purpose and expected results

• Eliminate inequalities in the educational system and at the information technology front between major cities and remote areas
• Integrate citizens living in remote areas into the information society era
• Familiarize citizens with the library, its information services and various ways to access knowledge
• Educate users in searching the Web for information
• Provide remote areas with access to public library services Increase the use of public libraries
• Familiarize the general public with new technologies
• Educate users into utilizing a greater variety of library resources
• Increase the value of the central library’s material and services
• Increase connectivity between local communities and special information centres (such as Service Centres, information Centres of the Greek Manpower Employment Organization, etc.) Integrate people who are at risk of social exclusion into the information society

Benefits
Direct benefits for:

• Citizens who are at risk of social exclusion and who can have access to the information society thanks to this programme
• The islanders
• Those who visit the island
• Those who are interested in acquiring access to information related to the island and to a whole range of topics

Indirect benefits for:

• Those who have access to the Internet

License for public use

All library members can have access to the Information Centre and its Web navigation facilities. To do so, they have to fill out a form whereby they acknowledge and accept the centre’s terms of use.

A set of special rules applies for children and young people under 18. Please note that

• children 12 years old or less can access the centre provided they are accompanied by a parent or a guardian;
• users aged 12 to 18 should submit a form read and signed by their parents or guardians, whereby the latter acknowledge and accept the terms of use of the Information Centre;
• some restrictions apply in the use of Web surfing services (parental control features activated).

Instructions and terms of use

PC users should have a basic knowledge of computers. All workstations are numbered and provide basic information technology services, such as Internet connection, search in the library’s database, access to Office, etc. Additionally, some computers are equipped with special programmes, such as encyclopedias, language learning software, parental control features for accessing the Web (for younger users), etc.

Users are invite to find the workstation of their choice and are required to fill out a form, whereby they request permission to use the equipment and accept the terms of use of the centre’s hardware and software. Access to workstations is on a “first come first serve” basis.

Persons with disabilities have priority access to all workstations. The library has the right to reserve some of the centre’s PC for educational purposes, upon notifying the public.

Users are required to respect authors’ rights while using the centre’s software and hardware and to make sure that the equipment remains operational and in good shape for future use. It is therefore prohibited to

• Use, copy and distribute illicit software that come from dubious sources.
• Compress files and/or install new programmes.
• Change the Desktop configurations on the computers.
• Copy CDs or DVDs without the author’s permission, unless the material belongs to the public domain.
• Disturb other users and control electronic communications.
• Destroy or damage hardware or software, which belong either to the library or to another user.
• Save personal documents and other files to the PCs hard drive.

Note that it is allowed to use an (re)-writable CD or a memory stick provided the person in charge of the centre makes sure they are free from viruses.

Users who do not abide by the centre’s terms of use will be refused access to its services.

Network security and equipment

It is important to protect the centre’s computers to ensure they remain operational. For this reason, each user must:

• use a virus-free external storage device;
• ensure they leave the computers in the same condition they find them and log off from all programmes used;
• make sure they do not interfere with the computers’ hardware and software;
• report any technical problem they encounter while using any hardware and/or software.

The library reserves the right to:

• impose sanctions and fines for damage caused on the PCs software and hardware that was intentional or as a result of severe negligence; refuse access for up to 2 days at a time to users who do not abide by the centre’s terms of use;
• refuse total access to the Information Centre and/or the Library to users who persistently
• refuse to comply with the terms of use, do not follow the instructions they were given, disturb other users and put at risk the network’s security and the integrity of the equipment.

Cost of use

The purpose of the library’s Information Centre is to provide services free of charge.
However, to maintain our capacity to provide services such as printing, photocopying and scanning, we provide them at a fraction of their regular cost. Users are required to pay a 10 cent of the euro fee per photocopied page.

Opening hours

The Information Centre is open to the public during the library’s opening hours.
Users may have access to a computer for 45 minutes, if there are other users waiting for their turn. Otherwise, total duration should not exceed 120 minutes.
Computers turn off automatically 15 minutes before closing time.
The Information Centre personnel have the authority to turn off the computers if they believe that their use interferes with the library’s smooth operation.

In the reading room, users can access and search the library’s main catalogue, which includes the Argenti collection and the Theotoka collection. Books acquired before the 90’ are catalogued the old fashion way, in other words on handwritten library cards, whereas books acquired after 1990 are being catalogued electronically.

Most of the library’s material, as well as the entire Argenti and Theotoka collection, have already been catalogued using the AVEKT 5.6 software, designed by the National Documentation Centre. One of the library’s main goals is to complete the electronic cataloguing of all available material, including rare books and new acquisitions, so as to improve services and increase accessibility.

Based on the library’s rules and regulations, library users may photocopy up to 20 pages per book, provided the books were published after 1950. Books published prior to that date, as well as old material and rare books may not be photocopied but may be reproduced using a digital camera.

Koraes central public and historical library of Chios is one of the biggest libraries in Greece (ranked 3rd in the country) with 250,000 volumes approximately. Founded in 1792, it was originally an annex to the Great School of Chios. The library collection was built upon a body of books which belonged to Adamantios Koraes and his friends, a group of foreign and Greek intellectuals of the Diaspora.
Before the massacre of Chios in 1922, this was the most important library in the Eastern part of Europe and the Middle East. Following the 1881 earthquake, the library was relocated to its current building.
Adamantios Koraes (1748-1833) was the founder and the driving force behind the library. He was also the Great Teacher of the Greek Nation, whose intellectual achievements demonstrated a profound knowledge of the Greek language. He studied medicine in France although he never worked as a practitioner. He was a born philologist, who had a firm belief in the value of education, which, in his view, was a sine qua non condition to lifting the Ottoman yoke.
Although his father was from Chios, Adamantios Koraes never lived in the island. However, he would always sign his writings as Koraes from Chios.

Main entrance:
The library’s main entrance (main floor) is decorated with paintings which date between the 14th and the 18th century and consist mainly of watercolours and copperplate engravings.
Visitors will also discover a unique Mediterranean seashell collection, put together by John Quintana, Director of the British Telegraph Office in Chios (1901).
Our bookstore offers a variety of books published by local publishing houses and written by local authors. Potential buyers can also find an interesting selection of books published by our library’s publishing house, or by the -“Friends of the Koraes Library”- Foundation, along with postcards, posters and other prints.
On each side of the staircase leading to the Reading Room and the upper floor, the sphinx, Chios’ blazon, catches the visitor’s eye. It was discovered on some of the island’s old coins.

The Philip Argenti Collection (first door on the right)
This collection is made of books, maps, engravings, prints, paintings, medals, a small portrait of Philip Argenti as well as his wife’s (Alexandra-Helena Skylitis) silverware.
There is also a series of showcases comprising items which belonged to Konstantinos Amantos, a professor of history specializing in the Byzantine times and a member of the Academy. Additionally, the collection holds Leonis Kalvokoresis’ decorations and medals. Kalvokoresis was the Mayor of Chios during the German occupation (1940) and was known for his active involvement during this period (1940-1944).

Koraes Room (second door on the right)
This collection is made exclusively of books, which belonged to Adamantios Koraes and other benefactors.

Reading Room:
In the Reading Room, visitors will find the busts of the founders and benefactors of the library, its folklore collection and art gallery, namely Adamantios Koraes and Philip Argenti respectively. Koraes’ bust in marble was created by Ioannis Kossos in 1885, whereas Philip Argenti’s bust in bronze was created by sculptor Vasso Kapantae in 1977.
The first Greek flag to have been raised to full mast on the island in 1912, the year of the liberation of Chios, is kept in our library and is an important asset to its collection. It is hung on the right upper corner of the door leading to the Theotokas Room.
The history of this particular flag is very interesting. It was created by a young girl, Eugenia Madia, the daughter of Konstantinos Madias, a local doctor. When Eugenia saw the Greek fleet entering the port of Chios, she immediately run toward her chest to take out bits and pieces of clothing she had been keeping and then tried to piece them together into a flag. This explains why this particular flag is not in keeping with a typical Greek flag: colours are slightly off and there are 7 blue and white stripes instead of 9. Despite the flag’s unusual shape and form, the Commander of the Greek fleet was particularly touched by the girl’s gesture and decided to raise it on top of the building which housed the Greek Head Quarters.
All the walls of the Reading Room are decorated with the portraits of Chios’ intellectuals and benefactors, namely Adamantios Koraes, George and Tarsis Dromokaetes, Leuke Kalvokerasi, Andreas Syngros, Ioannis Andreades, Christos Rodokanakis, Stamatis Proeos, Nikolaos Paspatis, Leonidas Mihalos, Dora Proeou, Georgios Horemes, Alexandros Paxnos, Georgis Mihalinos and Konstantinos Amandos. Our library is also proud to possess a major scientific work produced between 1809 and 1822 by a team of researchers under Napoleon's patronage. It is the famous « Description de l’égypte », made of 14 volumes and several paintings (litho prints and copperplate engravings). It was offered by Napoleon to Koraes as a token of gratitude for the latter’s participation in the translation of Strabo’s Geography, the only geographical treatise of the time.
Napoleon’s « Description de l’égypte » and Yiannis Psycharis’ simple and austere desk are placed side by side. Psycharis was a distinguished writer from Chios and one of the most fervent advocates of demotiki (plain Greek language). His desk, penholder and clock are constant reminders of his unfatiguable production. Although he traveled around the world, he could only find peace in the loving arms of his motherland. He therefore requested to be buried in Chios so as to be near the sea and feel the breeze of the coasts of Ionia greeting him farewell during his “last voyage”.
Next to Psycharis’ desk are two showcases hosting a metal sample collection from the Northern part of the island. These samples were donated by the Kalouta family and came directly from their mine. Next to the various metals, there is another window case showcasing an astrolabe.

Georgios Theotokas Room (next door to the Reading Room)
An impressive 4,000-volume collection is there for the curious reader to discover. Special attention should be paid to the variety of the collection and the book classification, made by Theotokas. Many of the books have dedications signed by many of Theotokas’ friends, some of which were known intellectuals. At the farthest right end of the room, there is Theotokas’ desk and pictures of him and his second wife, Coralia Theotoka.
Finally, this room also hosts the Konstantinos Amantos archive collection and a rare document, namely the very first Middle School Diploma ever issued on the island.

First Floor
The lobby is decorated with paintings depicting two major historical events: the naval battle lead by the Squadron of the Imperial Russian Fleet in Chesme Bay in the morning of July 7, 1770, under the command of Alexey Orloff, —a series of engravings painted by R. Paton—; and the Massacre of Chios (1822), depicted by Delacroix in his famous “Massacre of Chios” painting. A copy of this painting is kept on the library’s first floor. There are also several copies of various Delacroix paintings and one lithography.
The other rooms of the Art Gallery are filled with portraits of members of Chios’ noble families. Paul Dubois, a French sculptor and a painter, holds a prominent place in the room. Many of his works are showcased and depict the following persons: Leonidas Argenti, son of Pantelys (1881) and his wife Ioulia Ralli-Argenti (1890); their daughter Maria-Ioulia (1877) and their son Pantelys (1879); a portrait of two of Pantelys’ children, namely Philip and Ioulia (1899).
Eustratios Argenti, one of Rhigas Feraios’ collaborators, Ioannis Argenti and some other members of the Argenti family were either hung by the Turks during the 1822-massacre or slaughtered.
Elsewhere in the room, there are additional portraits of the Argenti family, including two of the family’s sons, as well as Marouko, Adrianos and Ioulia. The Ralli-Skylitsi family, the Mavrokordatos family and the Argenti family had prosperous businesses abroad (India, England and Istanbul). The room also showcases a variety of items such as medals, coins, tablets, a 17-century Russian Cross, which belonged to Eustratios Argenti, miniatures and ivory busts of the Argenti familly.
One of the most important items of this collection is Maria-Ioulia Argenti’s bust created by Paul Dubois in 1876. In the middle of the third room, there are window cases with some of the Argenti family personal items, among which the sword of the Greek Diplomatic Corps that was given to Philip Argenti.

Costumes
Three window cases hold porcelain models dressed with local costumes. These models were especially commissioned by Philip Argentis in/at the D. Court House of London. When the models arrived in Chios, Argentis ordered that their moulds to be destroyed to ensure uniqueness. At the farthest end of the room, there is unique embroidery, a bedspread from Rhodes donated by Pantelis-Philip Argenti.

Folklore Collection:
This collection comprises four major categories: embroidery, woven fabric, local costumes and wood carving items. These items go back to the mid-19th century up to the beginning of the 20th century. Window cases showcase all kinds of embroidery, such as çevre and bedding; male and female costumes from the villages of Pyrgi, and Kalamoti; a woman’s traditional costume from Elatas and a male traditional costume from Vrondados.
The visitor will also find a very interesting collection of woven fabric samples, representing everyday life scenes, from Pyrgi, Kalamoti and Mesta. Among the jewels of this collection there is a traditional wedding dress from the Ai Georgis Sykousis and a groom’s costume from Ai Giorgios Staphylas. Right across, there is a male costume and a wedding dress from Mesta. Next to these dresses, there is an everyday outfit from the village of Pyrgi and a woman’s traditional costume.

Wood carving items:
This collection is made of tools and utensils used by shepherds (milking pails and gourds), farmers (scythes and pitch-forks) as well as wool processing tools (distaffs, spindles and spinning wheels). The visitors can also become familiar with traditional kitchen utensils used in preparing and baking bread (trays, vats, buckets, yeast boxes and dough fermentation sheets) and other household utensils (mortars and pestles, spoons and plates)

Book stacks:
The Library has 5 book stacks filled with books, encyclopedias, journals and periodicals, newspapers, etc. The material is classified by categories and is made available to researchers, writers and the general public.

Philippos Argenti (1981-1974) was the major benefactor and the most generous donator of the Library of Chios. Born in Marseille, he was the son of Pantelis Argenti and Phani Skylitsi. He studied literature at Oxford and then law at the University of Athens. He spoke many languages and was a hard-working man and a lifelong learner.

His literary interests and his love for the island of Chios inspired him to direct his attention to the study of Chios’ contemporary history. Thanks to his academic training, he understood the importance of studying primary sources in re-creating the history of the island.

After his death, he bequethed his immense academic production, which is considered a indispensable source for any research which aims at investigating Chios’ contemporary history.

Here are some of this most important books:

• The Expedition of the Florentines to Chios (1599), 1934
• The Occupation of Chios by the Venetians (1694), 1935
• Chius Vincta or The Occupation of Chios by the Turks (1566), 1941
• Diplomatic Archive of Chios (1577-1841), 1954
• The Occupation of Chios by the Genoese (1346-1566), 1958
• The Religious Minorities of Chios, 1970

Argenti helped the library in more than one ways. He donated over 10,000 volumes, which consisted of books and manuscripts. Since 1948, he personally undertook the construction of the Library’s additional floor. The upper floor housed the historic and folklore collection of the former Argenti Association. Moreover, the Argenti family donated money to finance a new addition to the library’s building (1975-78). Pantelis, Philippos’ son, continued the family’s tradition by helping renovating and rearranging the library with new equipment and beautiful decorations.

One of the Argenti family’s many donations to the library is a unique collection of paintings, which could very well constitute a Art Gallery in itself.

Philippos Argenti died in London in 1974. His work is a demonstration, par excellence, of a man’s love for his homeland.

Born in Smyrni (Izmir) in 1748, Adamantios Koraes was the son of Ioannis Koraes, a merchant from Chios, and Thomais Rysiou. When he graduated from High School, his family sent him to Amsterdam to enter the world of business.

In Amsterdam, Adamantios kept himself busy both as a businessman and an assiduous student of foreign languages. He devoured all kinds of scientific and philosophical books and was particularly interested in the literary achievements of his contemporaries. After his stay in Amsterdam, Koraes returned to Smyrni, but in 1782 he immigrated to Montpellier to study medicine.

Adamantios Koraes was an exceptional student and a brilliant mind. In 1778, he decided to go to Paris to further his studies and to expand his professional activity and literary horizons. In Paris, he worked as a philologist and, most particularly, as a researcher and a editor

His work falls into three main categories:

• The historical work, consisting mainly of translations of the Classics and of original research work;
• The literary work, consisting primarily in editing the Classics and in commenting their writings (Prolegomena to the Classics);
• The nation-awaking work, consisting mostly of treatises which aimed at providing an inspiration to all Greeks who lived under the Ottoman yoke and at familiarizing foreigners with major Greek issues. His work was widely recognized in Greece, in Europe and the United States.

Koraes’ literary work was made possible thanks to the financial, practical and moral support he received from the Zosimades brothers and his blood brothers from Chios as well as from numerous merchants, intellectuals and friends. From a purely historical point of view, Koraes’ nation-awaking work is of great value: Koreas was fully acquainted with all Greek issues and was interested in providing an enlightening answer and a feasible solution. A true liberal and a dedicated democrat, he mastered all the political trends of his time and would not shy away from excoriating power abuse or political conservatism leading to regression.

Most importantly though, Koreas was a fervent supporter of education; hence his interest in Greece’s educational system. Part of his mission consisted in supporting, promoting and guiding the creation of schools. Despite his meager income, Koraes succeded in building an important book collection. His wish was for his this collection and the collection of his manuscripts to be transferred to his beloved island of Chios after his death. Despite various problems and delays, Koraes’ dream finally materialized: some 3,000 volumes out of his 3,500-volume collection arrived in Chios after his death in Paris in 1833. Koraes was fortunate to witness his country’s partial liberation from the Ottoman yoke, but was not blessed enough to experience the liberation of Chios, which would come much later.