As part of the South West Museum Development funded project supported by Art Fund ”Unlocking Bath’s Underground History”, Collections Manager at the Museum of Bath Stone, Imogen Smith was responsible for researching digital preservation and creating a recommended procedure to safeguard the Rob Franklin collection digitised as part of the project, and safeguard other significant digital collections the Museum of Bath Stone had welcomed into their collection in recent years. The research has enabled the Museum of Bath Stone to implement the necessary measures to protect key records pertaining to the Combe Down Stone Mines Stabilisation Project; comprising of photographs, films, plans, surveys, maps and archaeological drawings.
This extract from the 2022 South West Museum Development Small Grants application explains the value of this research: “The ‘Digitisation Preservation in Small Museums’ case study will provide value beyond the Museum of Bath Stone and, present thorough research aimed specifically at supporting volunteers in volunteer-led museums. The pilot study will explore best practice with limited budgets and provide an entry-level introduction to a complex subject. The study will help address barriers local and national museums face in preserving their digital assets and, provide vital resources for smaller museums holding collections of national importance, supporting the wider sector in the prioritisation of digital collections care.”
Please click here to be redirected to the Digital Preservation in Small Museums Case Study page of our website.
Please click here to view a downloadable PDF copy of the 2022/23 Digital Preservation in Small Museums Case Study.
More accessible formats can be created upon request, please direct your request to Miranda Litchfield (miranda@museumofbathstone.org) if you would like to receive the case study in an alternative format.
Taken from the introductorary paragraph of the case study, Imogen explains to who and why this study may be useful: “In this study, we share some of the problems we encountered and overcame and offer a Recommended Procedure with detailed steps on how to achieve a minimum standard of digital preservation to contribute to ACE Museum Accreditation and make lighter work of future tasks. Our aim is not to supersede training and resources provided by the DPC or other authoritative sources… but to distil and accompany their provision into a more consumable format for organisations similar to us, working with UK standards for collections management.”
Our greatest thanks go to South West Museum Development and Art Fund for supporting and making possible this valuable research.