Even in times of peace, neglect can be just as dangerous. Funding cuts to national archives and university libraries have left many manuscripts without proper caretaking. The labor-intensive nature of manuscript conservation—requiring skilled experts and expensive materials—makes it an easy target for budget reductions. In less affluent institutions, vital texts lie forgotten in dusty storerooms, slowly deteriorating.
Digitization: A Double-Edged Sword
In recent decades, digitization has become a powerful tool for manuscript preservation. Institutions like the British Library, the Vatican Apostolic Library, and the Bibliothèque nationale de France have invested heavily in scanning their collections and making them available online. This not only helps preserve the content for future generations but also democratizes access for scholars around the world.
However, digitization is a slow, costly process. Many smaller libraries and collections lack the resources to digitize their holdings. In other cases, prioritization decisions leave lesser-known or non-Western manuscripts untouched. Furthermore, digital files themselves are vulnerable to obsolescence, data loss, and cyber-attacks. The assumption that digital versions make physical preservation unnecessary is a dangerous one. shutdown123