The Fitzwilliam Museum - University of Cambridge

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Information Technology
The Museum’s new IT suite is enjoyed by visitors of all ages
resources. The eGuide has undergone public trials
and the Museum’s Access Advisory Group are
involved in assessing this and other aspects of the
Fitzwilliam’s interpretation initiatives.
Central to the work of recording and retrieving
collections information is the Museum’s unified
electronic database. The Fitzwilliam began using this
database in 1999, bringing together the disparate
records that have been created over the long history
of the Museum. In late 2004 the database held over
100,000 object records, the majority of which are
available to the public on the Museum’s website.
Much of this has been achieved through funding from
the MLA and each of the Museum’s five curatorial
departments is still actively involved in transferring
existing records to the database. This process will
continue well into the future to encompass the
Museum’s collections of half a million items.
Images are another important feature of an object
record and the Fitzwilliam is attempting to add
electronic images to as many of its database records
as possible. This is done through digital photography
as well as the conversion of existing traditional
transparencies or photographs. These images are
used in various tasks, ranging from the simple
identification of an object to the recording of the
different stages of a conservation process. Equally
important, however, is the value that an image adds
to a record for the users of the Museum’s electronic
resources. It injects life into the text information, and
allows people to make comparisons and associations
between objects. As technologies improve, digital
photography may also be used to assist in the
preservation of fragile objects. A digital reproduction
of a manuscript, for example, may serve as a
surrogate, reducing the handling and exposure to
light of the original.
Stephen Bond