Great Archive

The Great Archive is one of four large caves located on a shelf on the shoulders of Ram. It was expanded to hold the records of the Descendants of the Eith. It is now a library of knowledge, used by Practitioners and scholars alike.

History

The Great Archive began as a naturally formed cave, carved out by wind and water in a time before humans. The earliest known records of humans are written on the walls of this cave. It documents the life and death of the Six Tribes of which the Great Eith was part.

I am Eith, mate of Deris and son of Azerin. Tek dies of Head Flame. The son of Talis dies of the Sleep. Talis takes the daughter of Ame alone. Gote has the Green Stink. I take his hands and feet and burn them. I curse this Winter and I curse this Darkness... It must end.

Except of the First Record

Carved into the wall of the Great Archive

After the end of the Dark Years, the people of the Eith remained, building and expanding on the shelf of the mountain of Ram, known now as the Crescent of Heaven. This settlement became the founding of Rammarvijk.
When the construction of the Tower of Heaven was completed in 994PA, the cave was preserved as a place of records. Within the next 500 years it was renovated and turned into the Hall of Records, which was open to the scholars who registered with one of the Colleges. Another 100 years pass before the upper hall is completed as the private archive of the Descendants, and it was officially renamed to the Great Archives.

Structure

The Great Archive consists of three main sections: the ante chamber, lower hall, and upper hall. In addition to these, there are small rooms used for storage, repairs, and rest for the Keepers of the Archives.

The ante chamber of the Great Archive is open to the fresh air, while remaining sheltered from high winds. It is lined with stone benches where Guardians may sit and wait for their Descendants while they study, or students and scholars may take fresh air and chat openly. A spring of water has been made into a fountain from which one may drink.
The lower hall is the original cave in which the people of the Eith lived. It is closed off from the ante chamber by a set of wooden doors. Light comes from light crystals which hang from the ceiling. The walls of the lower hall are sacred, therefore all the shelves are placed in the centre of the hall. The subjects on these shelves are: Natural History, Medicine and Healing, Philosophy, and Mathematics.
The upper hall is reached from the lower hall by means of a spiralling staircase. Most of the upper level is reserved for Keepers of the Archives and Descendants of the Eith. At the top of the stairs sits, or stands, a single Keeper who determines who may and may not access the upper hall. The shelves are set into, or against, the walls of the upper hall. The subjects on these shelves are: Law, Historical Records, and Source. To some extent law and historical records may be accessed by well-known scholars and high nobility, with the permission of the Sonoderi. In the spaces between the shelves are tables and stools for study and copying.

Alternative Names

Hall of Records

Type

Library

Parent Location

Rammarvijk

There was nothing lofty about that hall. It was still very much a cave, no higher or wider than it needed to be. From the ceiling dangled crystals in whose dim light dust swirled lazily. Down the centre of the hall ran a line of sturdy shelves packed with scrolls, tablets and tomes.

The hall probably ran a hundred paces deep but, after fifty, the row of shelves was interrupted by a narrow wooden staircase. It spiralled tightly up through an opening in the ceiling.

All of the shelves on that floor were similarly set into the walls, above which were carved the symbols of their subjects: the three interlocking circles of Law, the intricate Hand of the Eith, or a ten pointed star. There was much more light up there thanks to wreathe-like arrangements of light crystals that hung over the sprawl of desks, tables and stools.