Title of Project |
Eliot Bible |
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Date of template (last revision) |
2/5/09 |
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Submitted by: name(s) & contact information |
Thomas Rosko |
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Sponsoring Library/Libraries |
Institute Archives and Special Collections |
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Abstract (1-2 sentences) |
Archives holds a rare edition of the Eliot Bible, the first bible to be printed in the western hemisphere. This bible was translated into Algonquian by John Eliot and published in Cambridge, MA. It was published 120 years before the first complete English edition was published in the US. This project will ensure that the content is made accessible to the public and preserve the condition of the bible. This Bible would be made available publicly. |
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I. PROJECT CONCEPT |
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A. DESCRIPTION |
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Goals of project. including desired end-product for users and MIT Libraries. |
Give access to the Bible publicly. Preserve the condition of the Bible by limiting access to the original. Digitally preserving the content. |
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Description of content. Subject and significance of content, relationship to scope and other collections of MIT Libraries, whether the content was produced at MIT, and if the content is unique. |
The "Eliot Bible" was published in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1663 under the title The Holy Bible Containing the Old Testament and the New. Translated into the Indian Language. It was translated into Algonquian by John Eliot, "Apostle to the Indians," to support his missionary efforts among Native Americans. The Eliot Bible appeared some 120 years before the first complete English edition of the Bible was published in what is now the United States. The translation is significant because it is one of the few documents we have in the Natick language. Within one generation of Eliot's missionary activities, the native people who spoke this language had disappeared, victims not of war, but of European diseases brought by the colonists. The Holy Bible: Containing The Old Testament and The New. Translated into the Indian Language, And Ordered to be Printed by the Commissioners of the United Colonies in New-England, At the Charge, and with the Consent of the Corporation in England For the Propogation of the Gospel amongst the Indians in New-England. |
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Spatial extent of content. Number of pieces / units and growth rates as well as other indicators of scale (e.g. file sizes). |
1216 pages 7.25 x 6 inch pages |
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Temporal extent of content. Span of years covered. |
1685 edition |
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Rights and/or source of content, if known. Planned restrictions if any on distribution or access to digital versions in DOME; if permissions will be needed, have been granted, etc. |
Pre 1923 exempt from copyright |
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B. JUSTIFICATION |
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Anticipated audience(s) for content. Include curricular or research needs that will be served; or benefits to audiences beyond MIT. |
Historians, helps linguists revive a long-unused Native American language. |
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Anticipated benefits of digitization. (e.g. search, access, manipulation) |
This bible has not been digitized. There would be a lot of access on campus and publicly. |
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Is original content at risk or obsolete? |
The original content is in very bad condition and should no longer be made available to patrons. This is an extremely rare book that needs to be preserved. |
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C. FUNDING |
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Funding: is funding available now, what amounts; what are additional or likely sources of funding? |
The Dome budget is the only consideration at this time. |
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Funding: . If no funding has been secured, where might funding be found? |
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D. SPECIFICATIONS |
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If analog, who manufactured this material? Quality/condition as of today? What preparation of the material is needed? |
The pages are very brittle and the binding is loose. Preservation Services needs to prepare the book for scanning. Scanning would be done on-site in Preservation Services. This would take approximately 2-3 weeks. |
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If already digitized, technical specifications for digital version; quality/condition as of today; should analog and digital be linked in some way. |
N/A |
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If born digital, technical specifications; quality condition as of today? What standards/best practices were used? |
N/A |
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E. METADATA |
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Does the project come with descriptive metadata? |
No, to be developed as part of the project |
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Does the project come with technical metadata? |
No, to be developed as part of the project |
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Does the project come with administrative metadata? |
No, to be developed as part of the project |
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Does the project come with preservation metadata? |
No, to be developed as part of the project |
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Can the metadata be migrated? |
Manual |
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Does the metadata conform to best practices? |
Will be developed as part of the project |
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F. ACCESS / USABILITY |
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Will the content interoperate with our systems? |
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Proposed features and delivery requirements |
None at this time. Perhaps it could be made available for a page-turning interface in the future. |
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Format |
RGB TIFF files at approximately 600 dpi at size of each of the pages. Derivative pdf will be created for public viewing. BPI will use a Canon 1DS Mark III 21 Megapixel to digitization the pages. |
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Data |
Page sequence would need to be captured in the file name |
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Access |
Users will download one pdf (or several separate pdfs to allow for smaller files to download?) |
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Usability |
The book will be made available by pdf until we are able to offer a page turning application |
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Other comments |
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A. Steps needed to produce product |
1. Preservation Services prepare the book for scanning: 1 day |
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B. Feasibility of each step in terms of: |
Preservation Services needs to prepare the Bible however they were scheduled to do so anyway for long-term preservation concerns. |
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C. Can project be carried out in stages? |
No |
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D. Does project build on previous or concurrent work |
No |
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E. What new capabilities are required |
None |
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F. Could these capabilities benefit other projects |
N/A |
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G. Sustainability requirements for: curation, technical support, addition of new content, development of new tools |
This is static material so no new material will likely be added. Only standard Dome backup, file migration, and technical support would be required. |
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H. Other requirements |
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Overview
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