Archives of the DAI Athens and the Archaeology of Greece (ArchAthen)

• Applicant: Professorin Dr. Katja Sporn
• Subject Area: Classical, Roman, Christian and Islamic Archaeology ; Modern and Contemporary History ; History of Science
• Term: since 2020
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 443011404

The DAI Athens is the second-oldest department of the German Archaeological Institute (DAI) abroad and home to an extensive archive dating back to the department’s foundation in 1874. At present the department’s archive hosts several collections, including the administrative and institutional documents (so-called Altregistratur), archaeological illustrations and drawings, the photographic archive, the map collection, the collection of aerial photography, photo prints and scholarly papers (Nachlässe). These unique archival documents provide primary source material for tracking the history of the institute and Classical scholarship, as well as Germany’s international cultural relations. This project sets out to make a large part of these archival collections more accessible to the academic community and the wider public by making available online the necessary indexing resources, description of archival records as well as the digitized documents themselves. Given the increasing interest in the history of institutions, academic disciplines and the German-Greek relations, such digital resources in Open Access will enhance significantly the availability of primary source material for scholars working in these fields. In addition, digitization is expected to provide a solid basis for long-term protection and storage of these important but also perishable materials. The project is planned for six years and aims at digitizing, indexing and making available online selected archival collections. The first phase (2021-2024) was dedicated to selected institutional and administrative documents until 1944, a unique collection of aerial photographs from 1941/1942, as well as seven collections of scholarly papers belonging to important archaeologists and Classics scholars between the late 19th and the early 20th century. The second phase sets forward to include further collections from the old registry, including the early general and administrative correspondence (1873-1916), the archive of plans and drawings, the early records of the Kabeirion excavation, as well as the personal papers of further 37 prominent scholars. These collections bear witness to the uniqueness, originality and significance of the archives of the DAI Athens, while also reflecting an enormous potential as research tools that can be utilized in the context of various scholarly undertakings and by several disciplines.

• DFG Programme: Cataloguing and Digitisation (Scientific Library Services and Information Systems)
• International Connection: Greece
• Participating Institution: Department of Conservation of Antiquities and Works of Art; Gesellschaft für wissenschaftliche Datenverarbeitung mbH Göttingen; Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz; Koordinierungsstelle für die Erhaltung des schriftlichen Kulturguts (KEK)
• Co-Investigators: Alexandros Bourlis; Persefoni Dimitrakopoulou; Dr. Benjamin Ducke; Martina Düntzer; Dr. Dimitris Grigoropoulos; Fabian Riebschläger; Angelos Sotiropoulos; Sabine Thänert
• Cooperation Partner: Professorin Dr. Vassiliki Kokla