MISHA: A pilot project to image archival collections ‘on the cheap’ with multi-spectral imaging!

Yesterday we had the pleasure of a visit from Case Western Reserve University Library staff, Andrew Mancuso, Preservation Officer, and Naomi Langer, Digitization Technician.

They are currently winding up a whirl-wind month-long tour, traveling around the state to test a portable (and affordable!) multi-spectral imaging system as part of a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH).

Andrew and Naomi unpack MISHA
Detailed setup instructions

This unique system is called MISHA, which stands for Multi-spectral Imaging System for the Humanities and Archives. The imaging system and software can be used to recover obscured and illegible text on historical documents, such as scraped-away writing:

Lost manuscript writing on a CHPL Book of Hours is a good candidate for multi-spectral imaging

To learn more about the NEH-funded project, please visit: https://www.rit.edu/news/rit-building-imaging-systems-help-libraries-and-museums-uncover-lost-texts. 

If you’re familiar with multi-spectral imaging systems, you might be wondering, “How much is ‘cheap’?” Roughly, the entire system cost under $5,000 to create – with the monochrome camera and light boards making up the bulk of the price tag. 

Monochrome camera fits in palm of hand
LED light boards built by RIT Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science 
Copy stand consists of T-slot aluminum framing and black painted wood board base

As you can see, the black Coroplast, duct tape, felt, and binder clips make up a very small portion of the budget, however, they are instrumental for using the system in a room that cannot be fully darkened.  We also observed that the lights were extremely bright, and the light shield made it easier on our eyes.

Felt is clipped with binder’s clips to keep out light

To test the portable system, Ohio institutions with medieval parchment documents from Otto Ege collections were asked if their manuscript leaves could be imaged on-site with this equipment.  With the entire glamour shot studio fitting into a 40-pound rolling suitcase, Andrew and Naomi traveled to various cities from Cleveland to Cincinnati, making our photographic imaging dreams come true!

This tightly fitting suitcase has packing instructions to protect all the parts.

Since the Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library (CHPL) own multiple Ege collections and a variety of other worthy imaging candidates, the Preservation Lab was fortunate enough to participate.  In the CHPL collection, manuscript 32 (of Fifty original leaves from medieval manuscripts, Western Europe, XII-XVI century) was thought to be the most promising to reveal hidden information.  

Naomi demos the imaging procedures to lab staff
Images are captured at 16 different wavelength bands ranging between 365 nm – 940 nm
A white MA CLP2036 99% reflectance disk is placed in every image to aid in image processing later
CHPL music manuscript is cradled for imaging by an adaptable book conservation support (ABCS)

Now that the photographic capture is complete, we’re looking forward to processing the images next with the open access software called Hoku, provided by the Rochester Cultural Heritage Imaging, Visualization, and Education (R-Chive) community.

We were thrilled to see how easy this equipment was to set up in person. And special thanks to Andrew who brought his handy adaptable book conservation support (ABCS) to cradle our bound collections. Everyone should have one!

Please stay tuned as we share any info revealed.

Ashleigh Ferguson Schiezser (CHPL) – Conservator, Co-Lab Manager