tottering piles of books covered tables and chairs , rows of stoppered jars lined the shelves , candle stubs and puddles of dried wax dotted the furniture , the bronze myrish lens tube sat on a tripod by the terrace door , star charts hung from the walls , shadow maps lay scattered among the rushes , papers , quills , and pots of inks were everywhere , and all of it was spotted with droppings from the ravens in the rafters .