Reading Herculaneum: Planning Grant for Unifying the Disparate Digital Representations of Herculaneum Papyri

This planning grant will provide support for a comprehensive approach to the digitization, digital representation, and electronic dissemination of Herculaneum Papyri held by four institutions: The Bodleian Library, the British Library, the Institut de France, and the Biblioteca Nationale in Naples. The funds we request will support the following activities: • Staff support for equipment research and software prototyping of key digitization hardware and software workflow • Staff support for contract and MOU negotiations with content partners • Travel costs for face-to-face meetings with museum and library directors in order to demonstrate technical approaches, negotiate project access, scope of work, and data rights At the end of the planning period (August - November) we will produce a full proposal to the Mellon Foundation which will include a detailed scope of work and all agreements for access to materials and rights to distribute results under a Creative Commons by-attribution non-commercial licensing agreement.