Purpose: Mnemonics was a tool in classification and information seeking processes in pre-print libraries. This paper considers the role of spatial mnemonics in Hellenistic libraries, including the one in Alexandria.
Design/methodology/approach: Since Library- and Information Science has not explored this subject in depth, philology, rhetoric, book-history and archeology constitute the core literature. From this literature, the role of mnemonics in the libraries is discussed.
Findings: A new description of the practice of classification and retrieval in Hellenistic libraries, based on spatial mnemonics.
Originality/value: This paper is a new analysis of spatial mnemonics in the Hellenistic libraries. As will become clear, they blend easily and logically with each other.