Arts

27 Mar 09

A large proportion of Oxford's 19th century out-of-copyright books will be digitised

This summer will see the completion of the first phase of the Oxford-Google Digitization Partnership project at the Bodleian Library. For the first time a large proportion of Oxford’s 19th century out-of-copyright holdings will be made easily accessible to a new generation of readers around the globe.

The Library’s partnership with Google started in 2004, making Oxford the first European partner in this mass-digitisation project. The initiative is part of the Libraries’ ongoing commitment to enhance access to their vast and unique collections for the researchers at all levels worldwide. The Oxford-Google partnership aims to make available many hundreds of thousands of books from the Bodleian and other Oxford libraries, representing a major contribution to the public domain content available through Google Book Search.

The works digitised include titles in English, German, Spanish French, and many other languages – from classic literature to scientific volumes in fields such as Geography, Philosophy, and Anthropology. Examples of works now available through Book Search include: the first English translation of Newton's Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy from 1729, the first edition of Jane Austen's Emma, John Cassell's Illustrated History of England  and Charles Darwin’s first edition of On the Origin of Species.

The full text of these works can be searched and read on Google Book Search, and readers can download and print a copy in PDF format, where local copyright laws permit. 

The agreement between Google and Oxford covers only 'public domain' materials, i.e. printed books for which the UK copyright has expired. The digitisation leads to the creation of two digital copies of each book: one for Google, and one for Oxford. The Google copy is fully indexed and searchable through the Google Book Search service, while the Oxford copy will, in due course, be made available from the Library’s website.

Talking about the digitisation programme, Dr Sarah Thomas, Bodley's Librarian and Director of Oxford University Library Services said:  'Library users have always loved browsing books for the serendipitous discoveries they provide. Digital books offer a similar thrill, but on multiple levels - deep entry into the texts or the ability to browse the virtual shelf of books assembled from the world's great libraries.'

Ben Bunnell, Manager, Book Search Library Partnerships, said: ‘With most of Oxford's 19th century public domain works now digitised and available to users online, we look forward to continuing our partnership with Oxford to digitise more content as it becomes available and to working together to bring more books to more people in more languages around the world.’

Having material available in electronic form also opens up new possibilities for scholarly research and teaching. It offers academics the opportunity to go beyond simply accessing texts, for example using computers to analyse content across multiple authors, periods, and genres.

For this reason the Bodleian Library is endeavouring to make its collections, books, ephemera and other material available in digital format by working in collaboration with other partners including ProQuest, ARTstor, and the Alexander Street Press. Bodleian digital collections include Electronic Enlightenment, Shakespeare Quartos Archive and Bodleian Broadside Ballads.