Boyden observatory: celebrating an African astronomical archive with international roots (EAP1190)

Aims and objectives

Boyden Observatory is located near Bloemfontein, some 1,000 km from Cape Town, where the Centre for Astronomical Heritage NPC (CfAH) and the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO) are located. This project will safeguard the rich astronomical collection held at Boyden Observatory, South Africa, by
• digitising unique and at-risk holdings,
• relocating, stabilising and publicising the existence/importance of the collection,
• curating the digital surrogates, and
• making this digital resource publically available to enable research in astronomy & astrophysics as well as history, politics, the sociology of science, and other humanities.
In addition, skills training (in archival practice, document conservation, and digitisation) will ensure that best practices are followed and that a trained group of individuals, selected from across South Africa, will be equipped to tackle future projects.

Outcomes

The records copied by this project have been catalogued as: