Project description

The domain-specific service German Archives Portal (Archivportal-D) is operated by the Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek (DDB). Its technology, data and organisation are based on the DDB infrastructure. Subject-based access through Archivportal-D was developed, implemented and tested using the subject category “Weimar Republic” as part of a DFG-funded project to develop an infrastructure to implement subject-specific access in Archivportal-D. The new access function was developed by the Baden-Württemberg State Archive, the German Federal Archives and the FIZ Karlsruhe.

It addresses a key user interest in entry and navigation options for comprehensive portals and is intended to facilitate the discovery of content while providing a useful addition to search-based entry. It can be used to search German archival materials dating from 1918 to 1933 which are sorted in categories and linked with subject headings.

The content of the new, theme-based access to Archivportal-D was based on holdings and data from the projects "Weimar – the First German Democracy" (Bundesarchiv) and "From Monarchy to Republic – Digitising the State Archive’s Sources on the History of Democracy” (Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg).

Results

• Technical and user-friendly conceptualisation and realisation of the theme portal infrastructure in Archivportal-D and revision of the design and functions of the Archivportal-D website.
• Development of a theme-based system with scientifically substantiated, relevant categories and subject headings relating to the Weimar Republic.
• Assignment of subject headings to the digitised archival material from the two Weimar projects realised by the Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg and the Bundesarchiv, thus creating links with the system and presentation in the theme portal.
• Alignment of the data maintenance activities carried out jointly by the DDB and Archivportal-D, thus facilitating the more flexible treatment of metadata and the enrichment of cataloguing information in the back end to include the subject headings and categories used in the system.
• Conception of a vocabulary management tool that allows archives to classify their materials in the online system.
• Development and training of a prototype for the automatic assignment of subject headings to archival material, thus simplifying the assignment of subject headings in the next sub-project for archives.

The subject-specific access developed during the project has a conceptual and technical design that can be applied to other subject areas. Other archives are cordially invited to place their archival materials at the disposal of the theme portal or to develop their own subject-based access to other topics. In future, it will also be possible to reuse the technical infrastructure thus developed for other theme portals within the DDB.

Project framework

Funding body

Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)

Partners

• Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg (State Archives of Baden-Wuerttemberg)
• Bundesarchiv (Federal Archive)
• German National Library (first project phase only)
• FIZ Karlsruhe – Leibniz Institute for Information Infrastructure

Duration

First project phase: 1 June 2018 to 31 May 2020
Second project phase: 1 June 2020 to 31 May 2021

Further information

Preceeding project: Archivportal-D

Contact

Gerke Dunkhase
g.dunkhase@dnb.de