THE GREAT PARCHMENT Book project represents a very good example of a successful relationship between different disciplines and professions. The research brought together archivists, a paleographer, and conservators from London Metropolitan Archives (LMA) and experts in digital technologies from the University College London (UCL) Department of Computer Science and UCL Centre for Digital Humanities. This joint effort supported a four-year Engineering Doctorate (EngD) in the UCL Virtual Environments, Imaging, and Visualization program funded by the Engineering and Physical Research Council and LMA. The conservation work was funded by the National Manuscript Conservation Trust.

The aim was to create a digital copy that revealed the content of a manuscript where the text was illegible due to its fragile physical condition. The book (LMA reference CLA/ 049/ EM/ 02/ 018) was unavailable for access due to the extreme fragility of its support. Traditional conservation alone could not reinstate the document in an acceptable and safe condition to enable it to be handled. Only the work of the UCL digitization team revealed the very useful information that the document held.

Today the volume is available for access online without the need to retrieve and handle the document unnecessarily.

Historical Background

The Great Parchment Book owned by the Honourable The Irish Society was commissioned in 1639 by Charles I with the aim to survey all the estates in Derry∼Londonderry managed by the City of London through The Irish Society and the City of London livery companies. This survey was compiled at a time of great political and social change and provides important information about the role of the City of London in the Protestant colonization and administration of Ulster as well as the population.

Since 1639 the book has been held in London. In February 1786, a fire in the Chamber of London at the Guildhall in the City of London destroyed most of the early records of The Irish Society, and only very few of the seventeenth-century documents remained. Among those which survived is the Great Parchment Book.

The volume was severely damaged by fire and subsequently by water. The volume was so distorted and fragile that for over 200 years it was unavailable for research.