The long room features two aisles with rows of desks and benches (also known as plutei, reminiscent of a wooden structure used by the Romans for protection). They are an original Michelangelo design! The benches served a double purpose: space to sit and study as well as home to the core collection of over 3,000 manuscripts gathered by the Medici family. The benches, acting as a storage area, had panels on the end of each row detailing the contents within.It is curious, Cosimo and Lorenzo Medici both contributed much to the library collection, perhaps to establish that they were so much more than men of commerce —their goal was to show themselves as men of scholarly pursuits, which was seen as a much higher calling than (just) making money.