Digitisation
An overview of the Library's digitisation strategy with some current examples, including the International Dunhuang Project and Turning the Pages.
For the past two decades, the British Library has been involved in digitisation. More recently, we have entered the world of mass digitisation in partnership with external funding bodies and technology providers. Through digitisation, we are creating a valuable and enduring resource for scholars and the public alike. We estimate that this digitisation activity to date represents less than 1% of our total collection. We want to build on our achievements by maintaining and extending our digitisation programme.
Our digitisation strategy underpins the Library’s corporate strategy to 2011, including our content strategy and digital library programme, and these will inform our thinking as we develop our strategy to 2020.
Aims of digitisation
By digitising our collection will:
- Open up access to content in the British Library’s collection for researchers;
- Create a critical mass of digitised content;
- Add value to, and open up previously unimagined areas for research;
- Support innovative methods of research;
- Facilitate the interpretation of our content by others for new audiences;
- Make it easier to discover our content;
- Make our content more visible and increase use;
- Preserve unique, rare and fragile heritage items by digital reproduction and protect vulnerable documents;
- Reveal illegible and hidden text or images and permit non-intrusive testing of materials;
- Generate income to help sustain our long-term digitisation programme.
Scope
The strategy covers all materials originally produced in non-digital form (e.g. printed matter of all kinds, manuscripts, photographs, drawings, paintings, sound recordings, microforms), the digitisation of which would fulfil one or more of the aims listed above. The materials may be:
- owned by the Library
- deposited with the Library
- owned by a collaborative partner of the Library
- owned by a commercial partner of the Library
Some current examples
Current examples of digitisation include:
- Treasures in Full series (Gutenberg, Caxton etc.)
- Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts
- Database of Bookbindings
- Codex Sinaitucus
The International Dunhuang Project
EnlargeThe International Dunhuang Project (IDP) was established in 1993 following a meeting of conservators from all over the world to promote the study and preservation of manuscripts and printed documents from Dunhuang and other Central Asian sites through international co-operation. The secretariat is at the British Library.
The Project gives access to information on over 26,000 manuscripts and printed documents from Central Asia in the British Library collection (it will expand to include manuscripts from other collections in the future). It also includes high quality colour images of manuscript fragments, with more images being added every week.
The images on the database are in copyright and may not be republished or reproduced in print, electronic form or by other means (for any purpose including private study) without the copyright holder's specific permission.
Anyone can use the web database but you need to acquire a personal username and password. At the next stage in the development of this site, this will enable you to recall your personal search events from previous sessions.
Turning the PagesTM
Turning the PagesTM is a system that uses computer animation, high-quality digitised images and touch screen technology to simulate the action of turning the page of a book.
Turning the Pages allows visitors to the Exhibition galleries at St Pancras greater access to the Library's treasures. Traditionally, visitors to the Library's galleries have been limited to looking at books from the collection in display cases - and even then it is only possible to view one opening at a time.
Turning the Pages is also available on our website, and as a commercial service to institutions and private collectors around the world.
The example shown here is from the Sforza Hours, one of our outstanding Renaissance treasures.
