Scottish Church digitization project starts with philosophy collection printed in 1699
Times of India | 18 November 2024
12 Kolkata: Scottish Church College has inaugurated a digital archive in collaboration with Bhaktivedanta Research Centre and one of the first books to be digitised as part of the ambitious project is a volume on philosophy dating back to 1699. The project will cover rare collections of Aristotle, Immanuel Kant, Adam Smith, and David Hume.
College principal Madhumanjari Mandal said: "The aim is to preserve our rare collections. We restored the oldest collections and started digitising them. As many as 460 books have already been scanned and 59 books have been uploaded on the website."
The college has the oldest collection of philosophy books. ‘An Inquiry: Concerning Virtue, or Merit (Volume II)' printed in 1699 is the oldest collection in the central library of the college, which has been scanned and uploaded online. There are some more rare collections that were printed between 1801 and 1826, including 'The Works of John Locke (Volume-IV)' and 'The Works of John Locke (Volume IX)' in 1801. 'The Theory of Moral Sentiments (Volume I and Volume II)' by Adam Smith, published in 1804, is among the rare collections that have already been uploaded.
According to librarian Manasi Guha, the rare collections, mostly out of print now, would be preserved through this digital archive for future generations. Assistant librarian Totan Maity said: "It is the first venture into the digital archiving of philosophical literature. This project aims at making invaluable philosophical works more accessible to students, researchers and scholars worldwide. The archive stands as a testament to the college's commitment to preserving and promoting philosophical heritage through digital means."
Two years ago, the college renovated the Jubilee Building, which was renamed the ‘Urquhart Centre of Old & Rare Books', where they preserved 20,000 odd rare books on various subjects, including philosophy. The college principal stated that the other rare collections will also be digitised in the near future and they will be available with a single click thereafter.