~ Nusquam Productions Proudly Presents ~
Curtsey of the course ‘Digitization of History’
Birth Of A Digital Facsimile
(Digitized Duplicates)
A Play by Brent Stone
Nusquam sed scaena Digital ~ Nowhere except the Digital Stage
A New Play For Fans of Digitization!
The birth of a facsimile charts the adventures of digital duplicates within the Louvre Museum in Paris France and follows their story through a myriad of protocols, methods, standards, tools, hardware, software, storage and finally, the digital portals of the the Louvre Museum!
Introduction.
Some people who are not interested in French history are interested in French food. When I was a kid, I loved the Superbowl. This was not because of the game, but because of the unusual variety of food that was available. I am not super interested (or informed) regarding French food, but I love French history. As such, digitization of the vast and various collections of the Louvre Museum is interesting and daunting and the point of this grant proposal.
Section I ~ Overview (Act 1)
When it comes to the national significance of the Louvre Museum in Paris France, I initially felt a little hesitant in my selection. I am after all, not a French citizen. It has come to my recent attention (via Ancestry.com) that my family has French blood. Forgoing any hesitation is not due to having some French blood, but because of the realization that if the Louvre Museum had not initially preserved items of French origin, then many other sequential historical items whether from Egypt, or the arts or records or anything not of French origin, may not have afterward been preserved.
Put another way, in some respects, without the initial national significance in preserving the French past, many items or aspects of international significance therein may perhaps have been prevented or excluded and lost to history. In a real sense, the national and international significance of the Louvre is linked, and this realization has implications that extend beyond the borders of France. For significance of this scale, digitization is imperative. Digitization is the name of the game, but what is the intent? The most expensive highway in the world would happen to surround the French Island of Reunion (400 miles east of Madagascar). The expense of this expressway was more than 2 billion USD dollars. A certain word gives a partial explanation, and that pivotal word is access. Whether it is digital or analogue in nature, the scenario of someone wanting to get from point A to point B will be a never-ending adventure. In the past, of course, this would only have been analogue in nature as the vast and recent highway of digitization had not yet made its mark on the world. And it is probable, with digitization sweeping over the landscapes of libraries, archives and museums, that with all the stakeholders involved, the total in terms of finances will overshadow the 2 billion USD dollar price tag for the highway around the island of Reunion. This grant proposal will create that digital road from ‘A’ wherever the stakeholder happens to be located, to ‘B’, the digital portal of the Louvre Museum website wherein the stakeholder will be immersed by an intuitive, easily navigational environment with new scenes that are always emerging.
This is a grant proposal for funding a digitization of the Louvre Museum and I am requesting a grant specific to this collection’s national significance. Even though this will be about the national significance of the Louvre Museum, there may be some prominent artifacts, documents and historical items that do not expressly fall within French history and culture but that will be included. The spotlight will, however, be mostly on French culture and history, otherwise the national significance might not be as pronounced. And for the country of France, the question of what could be as significant as the Louvre is an interesting one. The Eiffel tower would be a contender.
Act 1 – Scene 1 (Overview)
This overview and backdrop, which covers the national significance of the Louvre Museum is Scene 1 of Act 1. The mission of the Louvre Museum in connecting the collection of the museum to its significance would be scene 2. Describing its potential would be scene 3. Section II will be the plan of work and it will be Act 2. The workflow plan describes the process of digitization, and this is Act 2, Scene 1. How the workflow plan might be evaluated for demonstrating success in digitization is Act 2 scene 2.
Section III will be Act 3, which will involve budgetary and staffing considerations. Budgetary considerations will be scene 1. Resources will be scene 2. Key personnel will be scene 3.
Section IV will be Act 4. Digital standards will be scene 1. Methods will be scene 2 and will include aspects of different applications. Copyright standards considerations will be described in scene 3.
Section V will be Act 5. Potential will be scene 1 and limitation will be scene 2. Curtain and conclusion.
Act 1 ~ Scene 2 (The Mission)
What is the mission of the Louvre Museum? In previous digital visits to the Louvre, I quickly found their mission statement, but recently I have not found such a mission statement anywhere. The mission of the Abu Dhabi branch of the Louvre mentioned collecting and preserving the stories of people from history and indeed, that is something that describes the mission of the Louvre. The specific word that the Louvre in Abut Dahbi used was ‘stories,’ which is of course not the same word as history, though for people who are not historians, it is more relatable and accomplishes the intent of history
Act 1 ~ Scene 3 (The Potential)
Access is key, and digitization amplifies access and thereby accomplishes history's intent, which is in part to better inform as to history and increase the population of future stakeholders. If history is rendered as dry dull and boring, then of course accessibility is a moot point. Who would return to a restaurant where the food was forgettable or worse, lodged in the memory of the customers because it was awful. Accessibility is all important and this concept would not be lost on commuters during rush hour. Were a two-lane highway to be turned into a four-lane highway, this would be interpreted as progress.
When a museum digitizes, they are rolling out the red carpet to the digital masses and increasing the viewing of their artifacts to the extent that the digital views may likely outpace analogue views. Digital traffic to and from their website is a returning investment for their effort and resources spent to digitize and provide further access to their collections.
Section II ~ Act 2 – Scene 1 ~ Plan of Work ~ (The Workflow Plan)
The plan of action is in effect describing a well-oiled machine that in part accomplished the goal of digitization from start to finish. A digital facsimile of the item or items in question must first be acquired. And so, we come to the first instance of the sort of hardware that will be needed and that would be a scanner. And of course, there are scanners for documents in various stages of delicacy, scanners for objects, scanners for images, scanners for complex geometrics and many other scanners besides.
If the item happens to be a film roll, then the scanner in question will be a scanner that is similar in operation to and looks like an archaic movie projector that collects a digital copy of what is on the film roll. If the item is a very delicate document, then it will be conveyed to a scanner that does not compress the document but is laid on a table that is moved smoothly and directly under a stationary scanner.
Once the digital facsimile has been acquired, then editing is called for. Cropping is necessary along with rendering the facsimile to be clearer and of course, the addition of metadata is needed, otherwise people who are not archivists or historians or Librarians will be less likely to appreciate it and thus be informed. Metadata would be information about when the document was made and why, who made it and how it descended into the condition that marked it for preservation and treatment. The next step would be consideration of the software and storage needed to preserve the digital facsimile.
The digital facsimile will be saved under a file type fitting for the item in question. This could be TIFF, or NPG JPEG depending on the size and item in question. This digital facsimile will then be saved in several locations which could be a flash drive, CD or media storage ranging from a memory card, a computer hard drive or a database. This facsimile is then ready to be uploaded to the section of the website wherein the item is classed.
Because the collection of the Louvre is so large, varied and extensive, the more flexibility and versatility a software system offers, then the more advantageous and convenient it will be. It is with this thought that Minisis and its archive, library and Museum system seems to offer the most advantages.
Act 2 – Scene 2 (Demonstrating Success)
Is the workflow an indication of success? This is a good question, and it can be looked at from the perspective of a blueprint regarding the steps, plans, procedures and protocol that are considered when a digitization project is in the works or under consideration or scrutiny. If it banishes confusion and halts ambiguity and creates an easy-to-follow map to where the project should end up, it is a good sign.
Section III ~ Act 3 ~ Budgetary Considerations and Staffing
Budgetary considerations and staffing can be a make-or-break aspect of a digitization project.
Scene 1 (Budgetary Considerations)
There are budgetary considerations for pretty much every aspect of a digitization project. Within a grant proposal there are of course many costs. There is the cost of personnel and staff, and these would include digital technicians' preservation technicians and managers. Having volunteers with a vested interest in the digitization project also helps, though there needs to be training for them to properly carry out their duties and contribute to the digitization project.
The individuals who are working and not volunteering would of course need to be given a salary and benefits for the length of time that they are working on the digitization project. This must be factored into the cost of the grant. There are many other costs, of course, such as software and hardware. When it comes to hardware, much of the expense will be the cost for different types of scanners for varied uses on different artifacts, and there will of course need to be computers that can interface with these scanners. There needs to be media hardware for the transfer and storage of digital media whether they are hard drives, optical discs, hard drives and micro-SD cards.
Act 3 – Scene 2 (Resources)
For the scanners, I am considering that $5,000 will cover the different types of scanners I would need. I would consider about $5000 for computers able to run Minisis. For media storage, I would say that for hard drives, micro-SD cards, Optical CDs and archival storage, the allocation of $3000 should be sufficient. And of course, there needs to be software which, for its flexibility and versatility, should be Minisis which is normally around 35,000 USD.
Act 3 – Scene 3 (Staffing)
When it comes to staffing, the kind of manager can make all the difference. Times change and society does as well, but there are elements of good management that are timeless and helpful in almost any setting. The following is an excerpt from a pioneer book, though not an exact quote.
"The boss who bosses the least gets the most done, and in haying time, father said that this mentality would result in the most goodwill and work accomplished." This is not an exact quote a from a book called, 'Father and I were ranchers,' By Ralph Moody. I really enjoy reading stories about the old west. Whether they were immigrants, cowboys, Indians or early suburbanites, the day-to-day happenings and how they lived their lives are of great interest to me. In haying time, cowboys and ranch hands could count on there being no short supply of work (or food on ranch tables) but of course, there had to be someone to direct what was to happen, who was to do what and who was to deal with difficulties.
Who wants to manage people? Well, I am an ESL teacher, though not all the same rules apply to managing adults and kids. A class textbook (Ross, Parry. 2013. Museums in a digital age) for this course mentioned that the elements needed to manage a successful project are strong management and communication skills. I happen to have a twin brother and neither of us are terrific communicators. We often laugh at our miscommunications. "What did you just say? (response) Oh, I thought you just said a swear word! Unfortunately, miscommunication in the real world seldom produces such jovial and unintended amusement, although a sense of humor can be a great diffuser. Ross Parry specifies that management and communication skills are essential for a digital project's completion.
I don't know who said it, but the following phrase may or may not be common knowledge. "Life is 10% of what happens to you and 90% of how you react. Not letting circumstances be a dictator but dictating how you will use whatever the circumstances are, to your advantage is a skill and a lifeline you throw to yourself. A manager who has this type of mindset has a definite advantage.
Treating other people right is a major element also. Guarding the dignity of whoever you work with or for is not only courteous and sensible, but it can prevent and treat potential miscommunications, and the effort to do so is an investment in the well-being of everyone involved. We can be a thermometer or thermostat. A thermometer can only reflect the temperature whereas a thermostat can change the temperature. An effective manager needs to be good at not only foreseeing potential meltdowns but defusing them when preventative efforts have failed.
It is not always a good idea to hire someone who has a very high IQ. Neurologists and brain scientists such as Dr. Arlene Taylor (Taylor, Arlene (2024) High IQ, Realizations Inc) who study the brain have shown that 80% of the success in life is because of a high EQ (emotional intelligence). Some hallmarks of someone with a low EQ would include a tendency of taking things personally, jumping to conclusions, needing to be right, insensitivity, blaming others and poor coping skills. These are the kind of people I would avoid hiring though spotting them from the get-go is not always easy.
A high IQ has been shown to account for just 20% of the success someone has in life and an effective manager is someone who will prioritize hiring someone with a high EQ and proven work ethics over someone with a high IQ. If I was a manager, this would be my modus operandi. I can't help hoping that I might be employed at some point in a museum, archive or library and these considerations would certainly help me along.
When it comes to staff, I would hire a manager and about 4 technicians. The timeframe in relation to hardware, software and resources is not dire, but it can be precipitous in considering how long the project will last and how much the staff are going to be paid and it is of course the largest expense. The project will last for about 6 months and each staff member will get paid $30 an hour, about 250 dollars a day for five working days equaling $1250 dollars a week. This would total $5000 a month and $30,000 for the length of the project. With 5 workers, not counting committed and eligible part-time volunteers (who would not be left without any perks), the total would be about $150,000 USD.
I would request about $200,000, and I believe that with financial considerations including the staff, hardware, software and various resources, I could keep that number just under $200,000.
Section IV ~ Act 4 – Scene 1 ~ Digitial Standards and Methods
This digitization effort would not mean much if the team could not learn from the experiences of other digitization efforts. A notable one would be YUL. In 2007, Yale University Library with the resources and backing of Microsoft, attempted to digitize their entire library. Even though Microsoft later pulled out of the project, Yale University Library was still able to digitize 1/3 of their library. One could easily write an interesting short story about it, with positive and constructive implications for the digitization of the Louvre Museum.
The Adventures of the go-getter institution, a precursor to the Louvre Digitization project!
In the pioneering days of digitization, around the year 2007, the brave explorers of Yale University Library (comprising digital and preservation technicians, archivists and librarians), inaugurated an adventure and a trek to the fabled island known as digitization project success! Along the way there, the intrepid adventurers faced trials, delays and perplexities of all kinds! They were accosted by the wild beasts of fatigue in the paths they were second guessing themselves on! They had to scale and squeeze through the passes of bottleneck mountain, using all their creativity and resources. They had to move as a group and learn to streamline and coalesce their efforts in their quest. They had to make maps with various flowcharts and specific processes to help them on their way. 1/3 of the way into their epic journey, the colossal airship Microsoft, which has been dropping parachutes of supplies, hardware and software, headed in another unknown direction, abandoning, but not dooming the resilient and hardy YUL members. The explorers in the party of YUL did, through all mishaps, reach project digitization island. Even though it was 2/3's smaller than they thought, the victory was inescapably theirs!
The hardy and resilient members of the project to digitize the Louvre are in search of an airship, with an eye for diversifying its legacy in the success of helping to digitize the Louvre. The new frontier of preserving the past, in unison and harmony with analog preservation, is digitization. Therefore, the standards and methods of digitization are also the fabric of preserving the past for future generations.
At the risk of repeating myself, I have chosen the Louvre Museum as the object of my digitization effort, and these are my considerations regarding methods and standards.
Act 4 – Scene 1 (Digitial Standards)
Unless you happen to work in a digitization and preservation laboratory for a library, archive or museum, the word scanner will usually bring one item to mind. For digitization or preservation technicians, the word ‘scanners’, is more fitting, yet not encompassing. In a preservation or digitization laboratory, different scanners would be needed for different historical items. You could not use a scanner for delicate and fragile documents as you would for film that is to be scanned, and indeed the two machines, both called scanners, look totally different.
When it comes to hardware and software, there are several specifics to be considered. In the case of the hardware, a variety of scanners will be needed. There will be some items in the Louvre such as large artifacts. An example would be from the section housing the palace of Sargon II of Babylon. Some large items therein may require 3-D scanning tools that are more ideal for digitizing large items. A laser arm scanner is an example of a tool that would be used to scan large items that would be geometrically complex.
For some items or artifacts, a look into their exterior and interior geometry would require delicate care, and a high-resolution micro-CT scanner would be helpful for digitizing, say, the contents of a hand sized pouch or sealed leather case that is quite brittle. There are a variety of scanners with different features. Some may be more amendable to older fragile documents and some scanners are more ideal for newer and hardier documents. There are ancient manuscripts and books hundreds of years old that require scanning. They are of different sizes, weights and in different stages of deterioration.
Act 4 – Scene 2 (Methods)
Who wants to look like Lucile Ball frantically working at a conveyor belt with chocolates? It is my opinion that technicians for the most part would prefer to appear dignified, capable and informed regarding their work. Some may not resemble this description, but they must adhere to certain protocols despite their appearance. There are methods that ensure the safety and preservation of these documents and books. Oil or residue from a technician's hand or fingers is prevented by gloves, and the scanners are cleaned so that when the documents are scanned, there will be no smudges included in or tarnishing them in any way. The methods in dealing with documents are to help historians prolong the longevity of historical items, whether statues, artifacts or records.
There may not be many delicate considerations when it comes to stone statues, but when it comes to old documents, records or artifacts, humidity can be a problem, thus, with the more delicate items, the environment where they might be stored, must include climate control, to the effect that the items are preserved in the best and most natural condition as may be possible.
Within the collection, long term digital storage, and the software needed is an important consideration. There is of course a process for a physical document, or item or artifact to pass through in order to go from point A, the physical item, to point B, a digitized copy or a digital representation of whatever the item or artifact happens to be. If it is a large item, then 3D scanning tools would be of help. Once the entirety of the item or object has been digitally mapped, it could be converted to be displayed with a 3D toggle to enable the viewer to inspect it from every angle. The process for a document would entail the scanning of the document. After scanning would come the editing and addition of metadata as needed. It would then need to be saved in a file appropriate for its purpose. If it was a very large file, then the advantages of using TIFF files for saving space yet keeping the same amount of digital information is invaluable and if it is not a large file, then jpeg would be useful.
This document, whatever the size and file under which it was saved, would be ready to be stored in archival storage, or sent to be displayed in a digital museum or collection. The files could then be sent anywhere the institution desired.
Act 4 – Scene 3 (Copyright considerations)
I was in Egypt about a month and a half ago, and when I was in the Museum of Egyptian Civilization, I noticed something interesting. The mummy of Ramses II was there, but his sarcophagus was not in the display case. Instead, there was a note that communicated the fact that his coffin was on loan, though it did not specify to which museum it had been lent. In the case of the Louvre, items that have been lent to the museum should not be digitized. There are a variety of good reasons, and one reason is that whatever the item is has been copyrighted. Although Museums frequently lend to other museums, it is with the understanding that each respects the other’s copyright. Opportunists, however, have no such compulsion, and some, if they get away with copyright violations, will pat themselves on the back and use it to their own financial advantage.
A standard that is imperative and a pillar of honesty and transparency is the avoidance, at all costs, of copyright infringement. When producing digital facsimiles, extra care must be taken so that there will be no chance of accidentally digitizing something with a copyright on it, and the staff who will be hired will be presented with this important point more than once.
Whether in archives, or in a digital collection, historical items would be considered as part of the assets of the institution in question. It would be the result of the resources and effort expended by the institution, whether a library, archive or museum, to better preserve their collection. It is an investment and promotion in the value of the collection owned by the institution. It is natural that any such institution would desire to guard and preserve such an asset. There is always the chance that copyright considerations may occur, and in this project, a specific focus would be that whatever is digitized and added to the collection would first undergo an examination to ensure that it would not be claimed as infringing on any copyright laws for a similar item in another prominent museum or collection.
With respect to software, I am going to use Minisis because it has the flexibility and valuable versatility to be able to be used in a museum, archive or Library, and given the scope of the Louvre Museum, I believe it is the best bet though expenses may dictate a reversal and the project might go under Archivespace.
Section V ~ Act 5 ~ Project Potential and Limitations
Scene 1 (Potential)
Several years ago, when I first embarked on the rather daunting prospect of getting an M.A, one of the first assignments I worked on was the French Revolution. As a kid, I frequently saw black and white movies like Dicken’s “A Tale of Two Cities”, or Baroness Orcys “The Scarlett Pimpernel.” And I had heard of Carlyle’s French Revolution, though I have not read it. I knew a bit about the French Revolution, but not any minute details. Searching for those minute details for a newbie graduate was a challenge, and I often wished that there was an easy way to get such information. As such, I can appreciate the convenience my digitization of the Louvre Museum would have offered me years ago when finding very specific information on the French Revolution would have been very helpful.
To my audience, I might say something like the following. “What you ever lost anything? What about your sanity when your children or students can’t relate to history? (This would be a nod to the international significance of the Louvre Museum). Have you ever lost interest in history?” Naturally, some people might raise their hands, at which, I would begin a stunning presentation of a sample of what the Louvre Museum could offer in its digitized form, and I would ask questions like, “would you or your students or child be interested in a history based, digital escape room set among the artifacts of ancient Egypt (with background music and sound effects), in which, a very elementary knowledge learned at the Louvre of ancient Egypt would enable them to overcome the aforementioned escape room. This is an example of what digitization could offer to all categories of stakeholders and more could be added also.
Act 5 – Scene 2 (Limitations)
It is important to keep in mind that even with digitization, history will not attract everyone, but the way in which digitization amplifies history is worth investing in. Even with limitations, we should not see any of them as a barrier or reason not to invest, but a tool to somehow enhance, enrich and increase digitization.
Conclusion & Curtain.
I would like to ask that _____ would consider the funding of the digitization of the Louvre Museum as an investment that will impact the lives of millions and that would not only inform society, which is not only the bedrock of stability and progress, but to prolong the progress of societies everywhere from the United States, to France, to South Korea! Thank you!
A huge thank you to our patrons and audience!
The End
Sources:
Ross, Parry. (2013). Museums in a digital age. In Routledge eBooks. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203716083
Billington, James. 1995. “Technical Standards for Digital Conversion Of Text and Graphic Materials.” The Library of Congress. 1995. https://memory.loc.gov/ammem/about/techStandards.pdf.
Peterson, Kit. 2004. “Standards Related to Digital Imaging of Pictorial Materials.” Library of Congress. September 2004. 24AD. https://www.loc.gov/rr/print/tp/DigitizationStandardsPictorial.pdf.
Weintraub, Jennifer and Melissa Wisner. "MASS Digitization at Yale University Library: Exposing the Treasures in our Stacks." Computers in Libraries 28, no. 9 (10, 2008): 10-16. https://ezproxy.snhu.edu/login?qurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.proquest.com%2Ftrade-journals%2Fmass-digitization-at-yale-university-library%2Fdocview%2F231152981%2Fse-2%3Faccountid%3D3783.
B, Petersohn, T, Drummond, M, Maxwell and K, Pepper (2013), "Resource Leveling for a mass digitization project", Library Managment, Vol. 34 No. 6/7, pp.486-497. http://doi-org.ezproxy.snhu.edu/10.1108/LM-05-2012-0029
Taylor, Arlene (2024) High IQ, Realizations Inc, https://www.arlenetaylor.org/taylors-articles/1060-emotions-feelings-and-eq
Hirtle, Peter B., Emily Hudson, and Andrew T. Kenyon. 2009. Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for Digitization for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums.
Clarke, Cheryl. 2001. Storytelling for Grantseekers: The Guide to Creative Nonprofit Fundraising. http://ci.nii.ac.jp/ncid/BA63723301.
Stone, Brent Allen, (2024, Feb 18th) Reworded material written by himself and relevant to final project.
