Special Collections and Digitization Library Visits – 30 October–1 November 2019

Nikki Haw (Special Collections) and Lidia Swart (Digitization) visited two special collections libraries in October 2019, with the aim of building connections between libraries with rare collections and also to see how other special collections are used, managed and digitised. The libraries visited were the Africana Research Library in Kimberley and the University of Stellenbosch’s Special Collections.

The Africana Research Library started its life as the Kimberley Public Library in 1887 and has large collections of literature, rare books, and Africana. They also have various collections of archival documents, including numerous mining documents, municipal documents and church records or copies of records. They are fortunate to have a full-time conservator. Their oldest book dates from 1475 (UP Special Collections’ oldest book dates from 1491), and they also have a copy of the first translation of the Bible into an African language by Robert Moffat. The library, while having extensive collections, has a small staff, many of whom are volunteers. The library owns one Zeutchel OS1200 scanner and a Canon flatbed scanner, and does their own digitisation on a relatively small scale. They digitise on request for a fee and files are made available on their servers, either on computers inside the library, via email or access is granted for a fee. Their main focus for digitisation is for access purposes and not for preservation, so the digitisation is not of high preservation standard.  

The University of Stellenbosch’s Special Collections are primarily Rare Books, Manuscripts, and Africana. Their oldest book is from 1490, however their Rare Books collections include contemporary publications such as a 37 kilogram, photographic tribute to Muhammad Ali, published in 2004. The section also has a very small staff component. They did have a conservator, but that individual has now retired. Mimi Seyffert, the Deputy Director for Digital Scholarship at Stellenbosch University Library presented their Digital Repository. Unlike the University of Pretoria, they do not have their own digitisation department and outsource their specific projects based on funding they receive, specific to the project to be digitised. Their collections are then uploaded to their digital repository, and are of a very high quality.

Digitisation, while important to both libraries, is done with different motivations in mind, and it was interesting to note these differences. Both collections have gas-based fire suppression systems and strong rooms for their most valuable items. It was also interesting that both collections have the same book as the smallest book in their collections: a tiny book of about 5 mm by 5 mm, containing the Lord’s Prayer in seven languages.

It was very useful to see how other collections are managed, and we saw many good ideas that can and should be implemented in our Special Collections Unit, as well as ideas for how to build up the digi-office and increase our digitization projects. However, the most gratifying result of the visits was seeing that we are indeed on the right track when it comes to the care of our collections and that many of our procedures and processes are in line with best practise. 

Lidia and Nikki in the old Reading Room of the Africana Research Library in Kimberley

The Zeutchel OS1200 Scanner

Stellenbosch Special Collections smallest book

Stellenbosch Special Collections heaviest book