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The
University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology
and Anthropology initiated the Tikal Digital
Access Project in February 2002 in order to
address the preservation of and access to the
Tikal Archive. The Archive is the result of
the Museum's historic 15 year (1956-1970) archaeological
investigation at the ancient Maya site of Tikal,
Guatemala. The entire contents of the archive
will be made available to international scholarly
and interested public audiences through a digitized
web-accessible catalog and virtual facsimiles
of the originals.
The contents include primary documents such
as field notes, correspondence, administrative
records, maps, drawings, negatives, print photographs,
slides, films, and secondary records such as
published and unpublished papers, theses and
dissertations, and analytic materials. The Tikal
Archive was chosen for digitization because
of its completeness, its organization based
on a system of nomenclature later widely adopted
by Maya archaeological projects and that will
translate well for web delivery, and the potential
for previously unpublished data to change our
understanding of the Maya past.
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WHY
IS THIS IMPORTANT?
Archaeological excavations usually destroy sites
that have remained intact for centuries, rendering
access to information about the original context
of and for recording data all the more critical
for interpreting or reinterpreting the past. Archaeological
field methodology requires that what a scholar
observes and experiences is recorded in field
notes, photographs, maps, drawings, and other
media, only a fraction of which will be used for
traditional publication. Access to the remaining
materials is subject to their appropriate preservation
in proper repositories and interested parties’
ability to access those repositories. The Tikal
Digital Access Project will provide access for
a broad audience to the original data collected
through the University
Museum's historic effort at Tikal.
The preservation of and access to the Tikal Archive
is particularly important given Tikal's role in
both the Maya past and in the present. From much
of its pre-Columbian existence - from its founding
around 800 BC to its decline in the ninth century
- Tikal
was one of the largest and most powerful Maya
centers in all of Mesoamerica. In 1979, the archaeological
site of Tikal was inscribed
by UNESCO's World
Heritage Committee as a World Heritage Site.
The World Heritage Site List now numbers 730 sites
considered to be of "outstanding universal
value" in 125 countries. Tikal is a principal
tourist destination in Guatemala, and one of the
most visited archaeological sites in the world.
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OUR
MISSION
The mission of the Tikal Digital Access Project
includes a commitment to: |
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~the
dissemination of archaeological knowledge of
Tikal to a broad
audience via its website
~fostering the exchange of ideas and further
collaborative work on Tikal
between scholars, museums, archives,
and libraries via the web
~expanding our understanding of the Maya past
at Tikal through this
public access and collaboration
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To
date, the Tikal Digital Access Project has been
generously supported by the University of Pennsylvania
Museum, the Foundation
for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies,
and University Library's David Weigle Innovation
Fund.
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