Apocalypse Then: Medieval Illuminations from the Morgan

The Morgan Library and Museum has an online exhibit titled Apocalypse Then: Medieval Illuminations from the Morgan, presenting a facsimile of an early Spanish manuscript.

Collection Principles
The Morgan selected the images from an exhibit that had been held at the Morgan. The scope of the physical collection focuses on a facsimile of the last dated Las Huelgas Apocalypse from 1220. ��Las Huelgas comes from the name of a monastery in Spain. ��The manuscript includes commentaries from the monk Beatus of Liebana. This on-line exhibit includes 15 images from the Las Huelgas Apocalypse, with one completed by the Master of the Berry Apocalypse and two from another monk, named Maius. In total, 18 images have been published.

Metadata
The Morgan supplements the images with a significant amount of descriptive metadata. There is background information on the collection at large, there is information on the actual image including the creator and date. ��The Morgan gives the image number and seems to give the original placement of the work in the manuscript. ��Other types of metadata about the file and its creation are not as evident.

The Digital Object
The digital object seems to be a good representation of the physical object. ��The exhibit allows a user to see both the image and a thumbnail version. ��The viewer can manipulate both depictions by dragging the object to see various parts of each page. ��There are buttons beneath the image, letting the user move the object and zoom in and out. ��Paper fibers, cracks in the pigment, layers of media and brushstrokes can be detected. ��The images are not easily copied. Each image has a unique identifier located at the bottom of the "about this page" section. ��These identifiers look like MS M.429 (fol. 13). �� ��

Intended Audience

The project seems aimed at museum patrons and art historians who want an in-depth look at the materials used and the mechanics of the work. ��The Morgan gives general collection and item level descriptions, but the emphasis of exhibit seems to focus on interacting with the object. �� ������