Proposal: Paleography Play and Transcription Resources

The Folger Library and its affiliates have been hard at work in recent years on several initiatives that make early modern manuscripts digitally accessible for researchers. The principle result of this project, EMMO or Early Modern Manuscripts Online, combines digitized manuscript images with easy-to-read textual transcriptions of each page. A related project, EMROC (Early Modern Recipes Online Collective), focuses transcription efforts on the recipe books used in early modern households. Although the Folger has in-house specialists in paleography, the practice of deciphering early modern handwriting, external scholars are also welcome to contribute through several of its digital tools, including Dromio, a digital platform through which contributors can view document images and transcribe them using a combination of words and tags to indicate textual phenomena like strikethroughs, abbreviations, and more. As preparation for this style of transcription, the Folger team, along with Zooniverse.org at Oxford University and the Oxford English Dictionary, have created a friendly practice resource that will teach participants how to transcribe and tag digital documents: Shakespeare’s World. In a proposed breakout session, participants will walk through a tutorial on paleographic alphabets before practicing their transcription skills on Shakespeare’s World.