lost world: digitizing the fürer -haimendorf collection
DESCRIPTION
Lost world: Digitizing the Fürer -Haimendorf Collection. Susannah Rayner. Christoph von Fürer -Haimendorf. Born in Vienna in 1909 1931 – PhD in anthropology from the University of Vienna Studies at LSE 1936 – first trip to the Naga Hills 1938 – marries Betty Barnardo - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Lost world:Digitizing the Fürer-Haimendorf
CollectionSusannah Rayner
Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf
• Born in Vienna in 1909• 1931 – PhD in anthropology
from the University of Vienna• Studies at LSE• 1936 – first trip to the Naga
Hills• 1938 – marries Betty Barnardo• 1950 – Professor of
Anthropology at SOAS• 1975-77 – President of the RAI• Died in London in 1995
Welcome to Nagaland
Raid on Pangsha J P Mills
The problem
• Large and varied archive• Cataloguing• Specialist expertise• Funding• Format
Access to the collection before
digitisation
The solution
• Expertise• Opportunity &
enterprise• Funding
Project aims1. To provide access to the photographs, while
preserving the physical condition of the original material.
2. To create high resolution images of the originals photographs
3. To use the project as a pilot for future digitisation projects at SOAS.
Process
• Project team• Digitization• Metadata input• Website design• Upload
Methodology• Initial assessment• Cleaning and scanning • Entry of technical and
administrative metadata
• Entry of descriptive metadata
• Checksum generation• Ingestion to Web site
Equipment • A Nikon LS-5000 35mm film scanner attached to a PC workstation was used for all scanning
• Vuescan was used to acquire the image
• Lightroom was used for metadata entry
Nikon LS-5000 35mm film scanner
Challenges
• In-house versus out-sourcing
• Working off-site• Data storage and
transmission• Time allocation for
project management• HR
Resultshttp://digital.info.soas.ac.uk/
• Images online• Fully catalogued• Free research resource• Preservation • Digitisation expertise• Sustainability and
strategic management• Launch
Lessons learnt• Don’t be afraid to ask • Be realistic in your aims• Project Management is a
demanding, full-time role • Technology is not the issue • Invest in training • Sustainability • Team membership • In-house v. outsourcing• Quality v quantity
‘What I saw in 1936 and 1937 is now a page in India’s history, to be remembered and recorded but never to be observed again’.
Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf, 1962