Documenting a University Collection Online

The Johns Hopkins University's Archaeological Collection was founded in the nineteenth century as a learning resource. Its Greco-Roman and Near Eastern collections, extending into the Byzantine period, supply material to University courses and to international scholars interested in previously published items. While the lack of full current and accessible documentation limits the Collection's use, a new basic catalog alone would be insufficient to meet the Collection's original research goal. We are designing an on-line tool to provide documentation and access along with the means for critical dialogue, to stimulate wider use and greater understanding.

Our system will provide an introduction to fields of study, a repository for research, and a forum for discussion. The user will find specific information on an object's material, origin, significance, and use, as well as general introductory texts and online resources. The software will offer a cumulative guide to interpretation, not only in scholarly publications but also in new research, including that of students. By enabling users to become contributors, the system will set up a forum for scholarly exchange. Through the inclusion of research questions, objects for comparison, and differing opinions, we will raise critical thinking to invite depth and subtlety in object interpretation. Knowing that research will be retained to expand the ongoing interpretation of the Collection will encourage contributors to submit their work. Access to the documentation, available internationally to registered users, will bring greater notice to the Collection's holdings. Vocabulary-controlled fields with a hierarchically-ordered lexicon and a geographical atlas will mold submitted texts to international standards for museum nomenclature. Review of submissions by Collection staff will ensure professional consistency. The concept, which we are developing this year, is being implemented in a web-based, database-driven, password-protected system. We hope to have it ready for entering objects, testing and revising, in Fall 2002.