Archaeological Archives as a Resource: Creation Curation and Access
A one day seminar entitled ‘Archaeological Archives as a Resource: Creation, Curation and Access’ was held in the Royal Irish Academy on Dawson Street on Thursday 23rd February, with 80 delegates in attendance, inlcuding professional archaeologists and archivists. The conference was organised by the Royal Irish Academy Committee for Archaeology (Chaired by Professor William O’Brien, UCC) with the support of the Department of the Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and Dublin City Council. Click here to see the programme
Lord Mayor of Dublin, Andrew Montague and the Chair of the Academy Committee for Archaeology, Professor William O’Brien, MRIA at a reception hosted by the Dublin City Archives.
The conference was opened by Dr Tracy Collins (Secretary, Academy Committee for Archaeology) who outlined the issues facing the archaeological profession. In summary, archaeological archives, both paper and digital, are a crucial national heritage resource, worthy of continued curation, and which should be accessible to all researchers of Ireland’s rich past. The process of archaeological excavation is destructive and described as the ‘preservation by record’ of our national heritage. Excavation records are critical to the continuing knowledge of Ireland’s past and may comprise paper records, surveys, photos, drawings, ecofacts, artefacts and reports. Current legislation requires that artefacts are deposited with the National Museum of Ireland. What happens to the remainder of the archive?
The conference explored three overarching themes, creation, curation and access. Dr Andy Halpin (National Museum of Ireland and Edward Bourke (National Monuments Service) spoke on the National repository recently established at Swords. This was followed by a session on curating the paper and digital resource in which Anthony Corns (Discovery Programme) considered digital archaeology in Ireland drawing upon experiences from the Discovery Programme, while Dr Phil MacDonald (QUB) examined the long-term curation for archaeological archives in Northern Ireland. Dr Stuart Jeffrey (University of York) reviewed fifteen years of Digital Archiving at the Archaeology Data Service.
The importance of access to the resource was considered by Dr Ruth Johnson (Dublin City Council) in a presentation on the Dublin City Archaeological Archives, established by Dublin City Council in 2008. The papers were followed by an extensive discussion on best practice, facilitated by Dr Finola O’Carroll, Chair of the Institute of Archaeologists in Ireland and Professor William O’Brien (Chair, Academy Committee for Archaeology) provided summation and closing comments.
The day concluded with a visit to the Dublin City Archaeological Archives at Pearse Street Libraries and Archives, where delegates could see a dedicated archaeological repository and a reception hosted by Lord Mayor Andrew Montague and Mary Clarke and Ellen Murphy, City Archivists and curators of the Dublin City Archaeological Archive. An outcome of the conference will be the first policy document on best practice in archaeological archives in Ireland by the Royal Irish Academy.
Ruth Johnson
Friday, 02 March 2012