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Andreas Buchholz

The Aerial Reconnaissance Archives – An Introduction

The National Collection of Aerial Photography (NCAP) held by the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS) is one of the largest aerial photography collections in the world. The aerial photos of NCAP, in particular The Aerial Reconnaissance Archives (TARA), are used on a daily basis by historians, bomb disposal experts, governmental agencies, media companies and many more. Introducing the archive at the conference helped to highlight another potential use for the collection as a resource for art historians. Recent developments have created greater access to these collections. Firstly a new website was launched which allows the user to explore digitised photography and investigate georeferenced Mosaics for Toulon and Rome. Secondly a public search room in Edinburgh opened, offering access to more than 6 Million aerial photographs through newly created Geographical Information System (GIS) finding aids.

Creating a dialogue between the European Picture Libraries, as suggested by the title of the conference, is now more important than ever. Archives are facing huge preservation, digitisation and cataloguing challenges, very often with limited funds. To preserve these unique documents for future generations it is essential to work together on joint preservation strategies, digitisation policies and effective knowledge transfer between the archives. This is hopefully the starting point.