The
Göttingen Gutenberg Bible
goes digital
Digitization of Cultural Heritage and
History Primary Resources
Norbert Lossau,
Göttingen State and University Library /
Digitization Center (GDZ)
http://www.gutenbergdigital.de
http://www.sub.uni-goettingen.de/GDZ
Topics I
 The Göttingen Digitization Center (GDZ)
 Background Information
 Current Digitization Projects
 The digital conversion process at the GDZ for
primary resources
 Online Access
2
Topics II
 The Digitization of the Göttingen Gutenberg
Bible
 Concept for “Gutenberg digital”
 Digitization Equipment and Computer Hard/Software environment - Conservation and Image
Quality Issues
 Digitization Process
 The product “Gutenberg digital” - Guided Tour
3
The Göttingen Digitization Center (GDZ),
funded by the German Research Council (Deutsche
Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG)
 National Supply Centre for libraries and
academic institutions in Germany
 Co-ordinating national efforts towards
standardisation and best practices for
digitisation
4
 Engaged in evaluation and development of
tools and techniques for image capture, text
conversion (OCR), bibliographic description,
source description, document management,
and the provision of remote access via World
Wide Web
5
Current Digitization Projects (Selection)... 
6
Digitization
of
travelbooks and
early NorthAmericana
1500 volumes
more than 1/2
Mio pages
http://www.sub.uni-goettingen.de/gdz/en/projects/itinnorda_en.html
Digitization
of
mathematical
literature
more than 1,2 Mio pages
C.F. GAUSS
http://www.emis.de/projects/JFM/
European Commission-Project
„DIgitised European PERiodicals“
http://www.sub.uni-goettingen.de/gdz/dieper
The Digital Conversion Process at the GDZ
for Primary Resources
Image Capture
Metadata
Joint development of a new Document
Management System (DMS), AGORA
10
Image Capture
 Technical parameters: 600 dpi resolution, 1 bit
b/w (text material), TIFF Vers. 6, ITU G4
compression (grayscale scanning on demand)
 Scanning from microfilm (contracting to external
service vendors) AND
 Scanning from the Original: in-house with book
scanners (Zeutschel OS 7000, Minolta PS 7000)
11
Metadata
 Metadata during the digital conversion
process
 bibliographic catalog data
 structural (describing) data
 selective fulltext of navigational units (TOC...)
12
Metadata
The need for international standards
Dublin Core, SGML/XML, RDF...
13
Our way at the GDZ
Resource Description Format /
eXtensible Markup Language
= 1 file with all metadata + image
references (bibliographic, structural,
selective fulltext) in an open standard
for electronic documents
14
Processing RDF/XML in the actual Workflow of the GDZ
GBV /
Download File

GDZ Tool
Pica2XML
Document Structure
Description
GDZ Tool

Metadata
RDF/XML
Import
Export
DD2XML
Text of ToC, Index
Items, Lists
OCR

Document
Management
System
(Metadata
in RDBMS)
15
Bibliographic catalog data in RDF/XML,
compatible to Dublin Core
16
Joint development of a new
Document Management System,
AGORA
Specification and Evaluation: GDZ
Development: Satz-Rechen-Zentrum
(SRZ), Berlin
17
Agora:
Web
Agora
Servlet
HTML Templates
Export
Import
Printing on
Demand
System
PDF , XML
Agora
Konverter
Images
Documents
Text
RDBMS (ODBC)
Verity
Administration
Agora Admin
www.agora.de
Jobs: TIFF, GIF,
BMP ...
Online Access I
 Integrated online access via our Union
Library Catalog (PICA/GBV) for all library
media (print, microform, digital...)
(http-protocol)
19
Online Access II
 Direct access via our GDZ Document Server
(Simple, Advanced Search, Browsing List)
20
21
22
23
The Digitization of the Göttingen
Gutenberg Bible
 Concept for “Gutenberg digital”
 Digitization Equipment and Computer Hard/Software environment - Conservation and
Image Quality Issues
 Digitization Process
 The product “Gutenberg digital” - Guided Tour
24
Concept
 The ‘Base’ of “Gutenberg digital” in Göttingen
 Close and successful co-operation of different
library departments:
• Manuscript and Early Imprints - Dr. Helmut
Rohlfing
• Librarian for Religious Studies - Dr. Armin
Mueller-Dreier
• Digitization Center - Martin Liebetruth, Dr.
Norbert Lossau
PLUS Substantial funding by the Lower Saxony State
Ministry for Education and Culture
Concept
Primary Resources
 Starting Point: Primary Resources of the SUB
Göttingen
• The Göttingen Gutenberg Bible (complete copy
on vellum, 2 volumes)
26
Concept
Primary Resources
 Plus
The Göttingen Model Book
28
Concept
Primary Resources
 PLUS
Helmasperger´s Notarial Instrument
30
Concept
Access
 Free of charge available via Internet
(Göttingen State and University Library)
+
 CD-ROM (Saur KG Publishing House)
32
Concept
Target group(s)
 The “broad public” (national and international)
AND
 Scholars
33
Concept
Content
Defining 2 main topics for the presentation
 1. Digital Facsimile:
 Göttingen Gutenberg Bible
 Göttingen Model Book
 Helmasperger´s Notarial Instrument
34
Concept
Content
2. Added value I
 Bringing 3 primary resources on 1 medium
 Gutenberg Bible - a selection of well-known Bible
verses in different languages
 Göttingen Model Book, Helmasperger´s Notarial
Instrument - contemporary transcription +
translations in modern German and English +
selective scholarly commentaries
35
Concept
Content
2. Added value II
 Illuminated pages of the Gutenberg Bible excellent detailed views
 Numerous hyperlinks between the patterns of the
Model Book and the colouring of foliage, initials
and patterned grounds of the ill. pages
36
Concept
Content
 PLUS
 Illustrated text about Johann Gutenberg, his Life,
his Epoch-Making Achievements etc. (based on a
work of Prof. Dr. Stephan Füssel, Mainz)
37
Digitization Equipment
 Conservation and Image Quality Issues
 a maximum consideration of conservation aspects
AND
 a maximum quality of the digital facsimile
38
Digitization Equipment
Conservation Issues
 NO Disbinding
 Contact free scanning (NO glass plate)
 Short light exposure
 NO relevant increase of temperature during
scanning process
...
39
Digitization Equipment
Image Quality Issues
 High resolution
 High color depth
 Color management
 Standard file format
 NO compression
 high quality “Digital Master” concept
40
Digitization Equipment
 Digital Scan Back Picture Gate 8000
(8000x9700 pixel) with Analog Camera
 Special working place (moveable book
cradle, low-level vacuum system)
 Cool Area Light
41
The special working place
Low level
vacuum system
(perforated
vacuum bar)
Control panel
Adjustable
Book Cradle
Analog Camera
Linhof Kardan-E
Rodenstock
Apo-Sironar-N
high resolution
lens
Digital
Scan Back
“Picture
Gate 8000”
The Bible placed in the book cradle, one vellum page lifted
on the “vacuum bar”
The Digitization Process: Martin Liebetruth
of the Göttingen Digitization Center (GDZ)
45
Computer Hard-/Software Environment
 2 x Power Macintosh G3 (1x756 MB and
1xGB RAM)
 External Disc Array (140 GB)
 CDR Jukebox (2 burner, 35 slots)
 Picture Gate 8000 scanning software
 Color Management System
46
Digitization Process
 Scanning incl. Storage for the 1.282 pages: 6
months (1 person)
 File sizes: 380 MB per ill. page, 180 MB per text
page (archival master, 48 bit colour)
 710 CDs with 315 GB
 Conceptual phase and designing/editing of
the CD-ROM + Internet presentation: 4 (5)
months
47
The “product” Gutenberg digital
 Technical implementation: Göttingen
Digitization Center (Martin Liebetruth) and
imhof multimedia consulting (imc, Göttingen)
 Bilingual (German/English)
 Programmed in HTML (+ Flash for illum. Pages)
View with standard Web Browsers
 Free Accessible Web Version (Göttingen Library)
 CD-ROM (Saur KG publishing house) for a
reasonable price (50 USD)
49
Gutenberg digital
Guided Tour 
Thank you for your attention...
...and have a look by your own at:
http://www.gutenbergdigital.de
or in the
 Exhibition Room of this Conference