Agenda item

UNESCO Memory of the World Register – Inscription for the Robert Hooke Diary held at London Metropolitan Archives

Report of the Chairman of the Culture, Heritage and Libraries Committee

“I am delighted to announce that the City Corporation’s London Metropolitan Archives (LMA) has been successful in having a third inscription awarded for the UNESCO Memory of the World Register for one of the archives in its care.

The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation’s (UNESCO) Memory of the World Initiative was set up in the 1990s to preserve and promote outstanding global documentary heritage.  Following this, in 2010 UNESCO started a UK Register for items with cultural significance specific to this country which complements the International Register.

The City Corporation’s London Metropolitan Archives already had two inscriptions on the Register before 2014.  These are for the 1067 William Charter, the City’s oldest archive, and the 1940-45 London County Council Bomb damage maps (all items owned by the City Corporation).   Now there is a third inscription for the diary of Robert Hooke.

Robert Hooke was a major scientific figure, at the forefront of physics, astronomy, microscopy, physiology and geology and was the first UK professional experimental scientist, appointed as Curator of Experiments to the Royal Society in 1662.  Hooke contributed greatly to the rebuilding of the City of London after the 1666 Great Fire and the Diary contains daily entries for his work as the chief City Surveyor for the rebuilding of the City, measuring and arbitrating rival property claims so that the City could quickly grow anew.  The Diary is a rich and important source for both the history of the City of London and the history of science. 

2014 European Succeed Award for the Great Parchment Book

Report of the Chairman of the Culture, Heritage and Libraries Committee

“I am also delighted to announce that the City Corporation’s London Metropolitan Archives (LMA) has been awarded a 2014 European Succeed Award for the Great Parchment Book project.

The project is one LMA has worked on with the Centre for Digital Humanities at University College London (UCL) in a ground-breaking initiative to conserve, digitally reconstruct, transcribe and publish the Great Parchment Book, an iconic item in the archive of The Honourable The Irish Society lodged at LMA.  This volume is a key document in the history of Northern Ireland as it records a survey of the seventeenth century estates, but until this project it was illegible as it had been badly damaged in a fire at Guildhall in 1786.  LMA’s role was to research and then carry out conservation treatment to relax and open up the parchment of the book.  Images of the parchment were then taken by UCL and specially developed software enabled text to be read for the first time.  LMA then transcribed and encoded the text to enable it in turn to be presented online.

LMA is grateful for financial support for its work from eight of the Great Twelve Livery Companies whose estates are recorded in the Great Parchment Book; the Marc Fitch Fund and the National Manuscripts Conservation Trust.  Further thanks should go to the Irish Society which also helped fund a website to showcase the project. 

I commend these achievements to the Court.

UNESCO Memory of the World Register – Inscription for the Robert Hooke Diary held at London Metropolitan Archives

Report of the Chairman of the Culture, Heritage and Libraries Committee

“I am delighted to announce that the City Corporation’s London Metropolitan Archives (LMA) has been successful in having a third inscription awarded for the UNESCO Memory of the World Register for one of the archives in its care.

The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation’s (UNESCO) Memory of the World Initiative was set up in the 1990s to preserve and promote outstanding global documentary heritage.  Following this, in 2010 UNESCO started a UK Register for items with cultural significance specific to this country which complements the International Register.

The City Corporation’s London Metropolitan Archives already had two inscriptions on the Register before 2014.  These are for the 1067 William Charter, the City’s oldest archive, and the 1940-45 London County Council Bomb damage maps (all items owned by the City Corporation).   Now there is a third inscription for the diary of Robert Hooke.

Robert Hooke was a major scientific figure, at the forefront of physics, astronomy, microscopy, physiology and geology and was the first UK professional experimental scientist, appointed as Curator of Experiments to the Royal Society in 1662.  Hooke contributed greatly to the rebuilding of the City of London after the 1666 Great Fire and the Diary contains daily entries for his work as the Chief City Surveyor for the rebuilding of the City, measuring and arbitrating rival property claims so that the City could quickly grow anew.  The Diary is a rich and important source for both the history of the City of London and the history of science. 

2014 European Succeed Award for the Great Parchment Book

Report of the Chairman of the Culture, Heritage and Libraries Committee

“I am also delighted to announce that the City Corporation’s London Metropolitan Archives (LMA) has been awarded a 2014 European Succeed Award for the Great Parchment Book project.

The project is one which the LMA has worked on with the Centre for Digital Humanities at University College London (UCL) in a ground-breaking initiative to conserve, digitally reconstruct, transcribe and publish the Great Parchment Book, an iconic item in the archive of The Honourable The Irish Society lodged at LMA.  This volume is a key document in the history of Northern Ireland as it records a survey of the seventeenth century estates, but until this project it was illegible as it had been badly damaged in a fire at Guildhall in 1786.  LMA’s role was to research and then carry out conservation treatment to relax and open up the parchment of the book.  Images of the parchment were then taken by UCL and specially developed software enabled text to be read for the first time.  LMA then transcribed and encoded the text to enable it in turn to be presented online.

LMA is grateful for financial support for its work from eight of the Great Twelve Livery Companies whose estates are recorded in the Great Parchment Book; the Marc Fitch Fund and the National Manuscripts Conservation Trust.  Further thanks should go to the Irish Society which also helped fund a website to showcase the project. 

I commend these achievements to the Court.

Read and received.