STORY · VERKTOY_
Ex Situ – Open source mapping of artworks on museum shelves worldwide
A developer has created an open, geographical index mapping over 100,000 artworks from Western museum collections and showing where they originate from. The system functions as a searchable connection between museums' separate archives, allowing researchers to track cultural objects' journey from origin to institutional storage.
WHY IT MATTERS
This is relevant because it opens up better insight into cultural heritage colonialism and makes it easier for researchers and origin countries to trace stolen or illegally exported objects. The open source solution can inspire similar projects globally.
SOURCES
MACHINE-GENERATED SUMMARY This summary is written by machine from the sources below. We sort and explain — but we are a way into the field, not the final word. Check the source when something matters to you.