{"id":245,"date":"2017-02-14T19:06:07","date_gmt":"2017-02-14T19:06:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/library.bc.edu\/newsletter\/?p=245"},"modified":"2017-02-22T13:58:03","modified_gmt":"2017-02-22T13:58:03","slug":"making-the-modern-modern-digitizing-francisco-suarez-sj","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/library.bc.edu\/newsletter\/making-the-modern-modern-digitizing-francisco-suarez-sj\/","title":{"rendered":"Making the Modern Modern: Digitizing Francisco Su\u00e1rez, SJ"},"content":{"rendered":"

How can you properly study an author whose collected works have not been reprinted in nearly a century and a half?<\/p>\n

Digitize them.<\/p>\n

What if they comprise 28 oversize volumes?<\/p>\n

Digitize them. All of them. The two volumes of indexes included.<\/p>\n

In 2011, the Boston College Libraries Digital Library Programs did just that for the \u201copera omnia\u201d of the Spanish Jesuit philosopher and theologian Francisco Su\u00e1rez (1548\u20131617), which were last published in Paris between 1856 and 1878.<\/p>\n

When Robert Maryks, an associate director of the Institute for Advanced Jesuit Studies and editor-in-chief of the Journal of Jesuit Studies<\/em>, arrived at Boston College in 2013, he took note of this achievement and encouraged the Libraries to also digitize earlier printings of Su\u00e1rez\u2019s works so that their editorial history could be critically examined. With the 400th<\/sup> anniversary of Su\u00e1rez\u2019s death approaching in 2017, and an accompanying resurgence of interest in a thinker who pivoted medieval Scholasticism toward modern concepts of the individual and society, Maryks contended that Boston College could contribute much to contemporary scholars\u2019 investigations of Su\u00e1rez by making the older editions of his works more accessible, digitally.<\/p>\n

\"Naomi's
Naomi’s student assistant at the ATIZ scanner.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Burns Library holds the most extensive collection of Jesuit philosophical and theological works in North America, so it could provide a ready supply of rare, early copies of Su\u00e1rez\u2019s works for the project.<\/p>\n

A prospective list of 49 titles in 121 volumes was generated by Head of Digital Library Programs Betsy Post in May 2014. Maryks reviewed and approved the list, and the scanning soon began. About half of the volumes, the sturdier ones, were sent to Internet Archive scanning team at Boston Public Library. Over the years, the Libraries have contracted with the team to scan thousands of books.<\/p>\n

Some of the Su\u00e1rez volumes were too bulky or too fragile, and so were scanned by Libraries\u2019 staff on the Atiz scanning station in Burns Library. The Atiz has a pair of Canon EOS 5D Mark II cameras that capture double-page openings at 375 pixels per inch. Digital Content Specialist Cheryl Ostrowski logged 384 hours capturing a total of 45,682 pages from 63 volumes\u2014an impressive rate of 119 pages per hour. Imaging Assistant Naomi Rubin managed a group of nine students who devoted another 802 hours to \u201cpost-processing\u201d\u2014straightening and cropping images to correct alignment issues caused by the special propping needed to gently open the antique bindings for scanning.<\/p>\n

Several other Libraries\u2019 staff contributed their time and expertise to the project as well, in particular Digital Production Manager Bill Donovan and his successor Chris Mayo, Conservator Barbara Hebard, and Rare Book Cataloger David Richtmyer.<\/p>\n

\"Painting<\/p>\n

By August 2016, the last of the volumes had been scanned. The final tally: 44 titles in 119 volumes, all of which can be freely viewed and downloaded via the Internet Archive website as well as the HathiTrust digital library. Records in the Libraries\u2019 own catalog contain links to the online versions as well as call numbers for the original copies, which may be consulted in the Burns Library Reading Room.<\/p>\n

Francisco Su\u00e1rez Collection on the Internet Archive<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Quick stats:<\/p>\n