proposal part b - The Bernstein Project
proposal part b - The Bernstein Project
proposal part b - The Bernstein Project
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CIP-ICT PSP Call 4 6<br />
Pilot B<br />
[Imperialle]<br />
Imperialle can be used directly within Europeana or at the <strong>Bernstein</strong> portal. As mentioned above, the<br />
information carrier paper is <strong>part</strong>icularly useful in historical research because in many cases, careful study of a<br />
sheet of paper allows much precise historical data to be collected. Watermarks and other unique paper<br />
characteristics, such as chain and laid line imprints, can be used to identify the paper’s maker and thus, the date<br />
and location of its production. <strong>The</strong>se unique paper characteristics make it possible to compare the paper used in<br />
a <strong>part</strong>icular field, be it art, literature, music or architecture, in order to determine the chronology of an oeuvre<br />
and to trace it back to its origin. For example, knowledge of paper structure enabled the stock of 19 th -century<br />
prints at the Swedish Heritage Museum to be linked with drawings in a private Spanish collection and a group<br />
of letters kept at the Russian Academy of Sciences, facilitating (in some cases, making even possible!) the<br />
identification and determination of the origin of many hitherto unidentifiable objects, or objects that had not<br />
been adequately described. Presently, such interdisciplinary research is rarely possible due to the lack of access<br />
to wide enough resources; it is for this reason that Imperialle plans to link very diverse collections at an entirely<br />
new level, jointly showing images and paper structure. This will serve as a foundation upon which to build<br />
further.<br />
<strong>The</strong> materials to be digitized are being provided by various cultural institutions. <strong>The</strong>ir common interest in<br />
digitising the masterpieces in their holdings is based on the need or desire to make them available to both<br />
scholars and the general public, as well as to preserve and protect these precious objects. In some cases,<br />
Imperialle has prompted the interest in digitising these holdings and making them available on the internet, and<br />
in other cases it will continue digitisation projects of the content providers already in place. This and the<br />
sustainability of <strong>Bernstein</strong>, as guaranteed by contract at the Austrian Academy of Sciences, will ensure the<br />
continued availability of new material, also after the Imperialle project has ended.<br />
Jakob Ignaz Hittorff, WRM Vedute d’Italia, HERTZ