Sarasvati Mahal Library with 500-year-old rare books & manuscripts

Within the Thanjavur Maratha Palace Complex in Tamil Nadu is a medieval-era library set up by the Nayak Kings of Tanjore (1535 to 1674). Among the oldest libraries in Asia, Sarasvati Mahal has a collection of over 49,000 manuscripts in palm leaf and paper written in Tamil, Hindi, English, Marathi, and other languages. It was built for royal family members.