Rome’s chief library legacy was the shift from papyrus to parchment.

Evidence

The most substantial legacy of Rome, none of whose libraries survived the fall of the western empire, was the gradual transition from papyrus scrolls to parchment books as the medium of storage. Parchment, made from animal skins, was a much more resilient surface, and it was on parchment that the learning of Rome lived out the next millennium in the monasteries of the Christian West. — Andrew Pettegree, Arthur der Weduwen, The Library- A Fragile History, 24

Categorization

• XREF: Directly addresses the reader’s stated purpose of tracing medium shifts from papyrus to e-books — a pivotal medium transition in library history. — connects to: The fall of Rome disrupted papyrus supply, making parchment the standard — Andrew Pettegree, Arthur der Weduwen, The Library- A Fragile History, 85; Parchment displaced papyrus because it was durable and writable on both sides — Andrew Pettegree, Arthur der Weduwen, The Library- A Fragile History, 84
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Andrew Pettegree, Arthur der Weduwen, The Library- A Fragile History, 24

Broader Connections

• Parchment displaced papyrus because it was durable and writable on both sides #expands (0.70) — Andrew Pettegree, Arthur der Weduwen, The Library- A Fragile History, 84
• The fall of Rome disrupted papyrus supply, making parchment the standard #corroborates (0.60) — Andrew Pettegree, Arthur der Weduwen, The Library- A Fragile History, 85