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\markboth{Peperoni, Zuccoli}{The Bologna historical archives on the Web}

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\title{The Bologna historical archives on the Web}

\author{L. Peperoni\altaffilmark{1} and M. Zuccoli}
\affil{Astronomy Department, University of Bologna}

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\altaffiltext{1}{Librarian, Economics Department, University of Bologna} 

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\begin{abstract}
The historical archives of the Department of Astronomy of Bologna collect 
papers from 1696 to 1958. The documents refer to the scientific activity of 
local astronomers, including letters, drawings, projects and manuscripts of 
their works.
Our article describes the re-organization of the archives and its inventory,
together with the project of availability on the Web. In fact, since the 
archives are often attended by foreign scholars, due to the wide-range
relationships of the Bolognese astronomers throughout times, the best solution
for an electronic availability seems to be the Internet. The project includes
both string queries and sequence approach to the archives, together with 
hypertext links to the local museum and some iconography. 
\end{abstract}

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\section{Introduction}

The archives of the Department of Astronomy of the University of Bologna date
back to the XVII century, collecting scientific and administrative papers,
letters and drawings.

The astronomical institute of Bologna - first public observatory in Italy -
was founded in 1711. The archives collect its preliminary documents, the first
observations made in the astronomical tower, then following its history until 
1957.

The papers can be divided into three main archival categories: meteorological
observations, astronomical observations and 65 miscellaneous boxes.

The archives had been organized by prof.Guido Horn d'Arturo (1879-1967),
director of the Observatory from 1921 to 1954. He followed a twofold method,
both chronological and by subject. Therefore the boxes bear a title and are
grouped according to their subject, such as ``calendar", ``ephemerides" or
``letters". Inside the subject, the papers are placed in chronological order.

We decided to keep this organization, thinking that informatics could cope
with some oddities in the classification. In order to select a program, at first
we considered some Italian databases for historical archives and we eventually
focussed on the program used at Brera Observatory, in Milan\footnote{
http://mahler.brera.mi.astro.it/img/port2.conf?377,76;
http://albinoni.brera.unimi.it/CAELUM/BIBLIO/biblioteca.html}.

\section{Our choice}

Our choice went to a Web interface, putting the archives on the Web server of
the Astronomical Observatory of Bologna\footnote{
http://www.bo.astro.it/~biblio/Archives/copertina.htm}. 
The Web interface appeared suitable
not only for aesthetical reasons, but also for its hypertextual structure and
added values, such as e-mail, network-based information retrieval, and document
saving.

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\begin{figure}
\hskip2.0truecm\epsfxsize=10truecm\epsfbox {archivio2.ps}
\caption{The home page of the Bologna historical archives} \label{fig-1}
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The home page opens with general information about the archives and an 
interactive form for microfilm requests. A brief history of the Observatory is
linked to a list of its directors. An English version of the historical 
introduction and of the main information services is provided.

The main part of the site is the archives inventory. The database, written in
HTML, is made of files, all with uniform structure. Each file contains a descri-
ption of the documents (or set of documents) collected in a box, or the list of
notebooks of observations.

Our choice of the HTML language is based upon two reasons. The first is that, 
being HTML a standard format for description of document structure, Web 
browsers can view the files directly . Secondly, the wide spread diffusion of 
the Internet and of the Web interface ensures future maintenance  and updating 
of the involved protocols and tools.

The database can be accessed {\bf in sequence} and {\bf searched by strings}.

The sequential approach is available through the hypertextual guide and its
frame structure. The Web page is thus divided in two sections: a fix section
on the left side, bearing the list of the archival series, and a larger one on
the right, showing the item selected from the list.

Since taking care of the historical archives is not the only due, and maybe
not the first one for the astronomical library, the work goes on slowly. The 
Web interface allows to present the archives even if work is still in progress.
In fact, a first look at the archives is possible through the summary in the
frame. As soon as an item in the list (e.g. a new box) is examined and 
decribed, a new file is linked to the summary. In the end, all items in the 
summary will have
an analytical description on the right of the screen. Abstracts of each letter 
will be a further step in document description. Anyway, letters are available 
at the present with their date, place and names of sender and addressee; only
a few of them are already abstracted.

Search by string has been developed trying to meet the users' needs, as they
had been expressed during the last years. The archives are generally visited
by university researchers (astronomers, historians of science and of 
meteorology) and by students attending the course of history of astronomy.
Our historical archives deal mainly with astronomy, but some mathematics,
physics, meteorology and other disciplines are touched by its documents. The
life of the observatory itself is of paramount importance for historians of 
science. In fact it started its activity under the Pope's government, was 
closed by Napoleon and, in XXth century, it bored the consequencies of 
having a Hebrew director during Fascism. This makes the archives interesting 
for a wide range of users, whose information needs are not entirely
predictable. Therefore search by string should be available on a very 
analytical database,
even if archival theory suggests to stop description at series level.

Information retrieval is possible through WWWWAIS.C (2.5), an ANSI.C program
downloadable from the Net\footnote{
http://www.eit.com/software/wwwais/wwwais.html}.
It works as a gateway between other programs
creating indexed files catalogs, such as freeWAIS or SWISH, and a Web
formscapable browser.
Search by string should follow the instructions supplied, using boolean
operators AND and OR and the asterisk as a wildcard.

\section{Work in progress}

The page ends with a ``Work in progress" section, comprehending three projects:
the directors' gallery, the published observations and the authority file.

\begin{itemize}
\item The directors' gallery is a development of the directors' list showing, 
for
each director, a portrait, a biography and a complete bibliography. By now the
first director's page (e.g. Eustachio Manfredi) is available.
\item The published observation project is based on the idea that the archives 
are strictly connected with the astronomy library and museum. Presence in the 
observatory of the instruments used for observations, together with the 
astronomers' notebooks and their books, create a unique witness of 
eighteenth-century astronomy in Bologna. Analysis of bibliographic sources shows that, in
XVIII century, for each observed phenomenon a short communication was published
in Italian after a couple of months. This brief account, usually not more than
two-three pages long, was generally with no printer's name nor date. Today this
kind of document would be called ``grey literature". After some years a longer 
paper, in Latin language, used to appear in the proceedings of Bologna or Paris
Academy of Sciences. Our project aims to create a link from the manuscript
observations in the archives to the published observations, indicating which 
ones are owned by the astronomy library. Another link goes to the instrument
mentioned in the observations and present in the museum, whose catalogue is 
available on the Web.
\item The creation of an authority file is needed, in order to refine search by 
string. In fact the list of accepted forms of names can help to solve cases
of synonyms and to identify the correct names of towns and people. Entering
the accepted form as a string to be searched would allow easier and prompter
searching. A future development of the authority file could even include 
subject headings, but the hypothesis is not in our plans, at the moment.
\end {itemize}

Our present task is to complete description of the boxes still missing to put
them on the Web, supplying the astronomical community with an important tool
for historical research.  

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\acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank Marco Lolli for his help.

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\begin{references}
\reference Hensen, S. L. 1983, Archives, personal papers and manuscripts, 
Washington: Manuscript Division, Library of Congress 
\end{references}

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