The digitisation of historical photographic archives is transforming how researchers access and interpret the past. At the University of Exeter, a major project is underway to digitise a rare collection of glass plate negatives from the Imperial Institute, preserving fragile archival photography while opening new opportunities to study imperial history and global industry.
In 2023, we were pleased to support a new digitisation project with the University of Exeter, helping to preserve and unlock a remarkable photographic archive connected to the historic Imperial Institute. Held within the University’s Special Collections, the Imperial Institute photographic collection offers a rare visual record of the global reach of the British Empire and the industries that supported it.
The photographs being digitised form part of the Imperial Institute photographic collection, held within the University’s Special Collections. Founded in 1887, the Imperial Institute functioned as both a public exhibition space and a research hub, showcasing imperial industry and the economic potential of Britain’s colonies.
Photography played a key role in this mission, documenting landscapes, industries, and resources across the British Empire.
“The photograph collection held at Exeter is a rare and significant remnant of a once-vast collection created to support the educational and commercial ambitions of the British Empire.”
- Caroline Walter, Head of Heritage Collections at Exeter University
The archive now held at Exeter is particularly remarkable because it represents one of the few surviving remnants of a much larger photographic collection. Library staff rescued the materials during the demolition of the Institute’s building, ensuring that at least part of this visual record survived.
Today, the photographs provide valuable insight into industries and landscapes across multiple continents. They document key sectors that were central to imperial economies, including:
Beyond their historical significance, the photographs are also important from a technical and photographic perspective. The collection includes a wide variety of formats and mediums, including stereographs, panoramas, lantern slides, and large-format images, making it an important resource for studying historic photographic practices as well as the subjects they depict.
Although the collection has been held by the University since the 1970s, it has remained largely underused by researchers. This is mainly due to a combination of preservation and access challenges.
Many of the images survive as glass plate negatives, which are extremely fragile and easily damaged through handling. Some plates have already been broken, and recent conservation work uncovered additional damage caused by water exposure.
The negative format also makes the images difficult for researchers to view and interpret without specialist equipment.
Alongside these preservation concerns, the collection lacked detailed catalogue information. Although a basic list of the negatives existed, it had never been added to the University’s online catalogue and did not include the descriptive detail needed to make the collection easily discoverable.
To begin addressing these challenges, funding was secured for two student interns who carried out essential preparatory work. They rehoused the plates into appropriate archival enclosures and extracted metadata from the original storage boxes, many of which were dirty, damaged, or separated from the negatives they once accompanied.
Digitisation will now allow the team to reconnect this metadata with the correct images and create a fully searchable online catalogue.
The project is being delivered in partnership with TownsWeb Archiving, whose experience working with heritage collections made them a strong fit for the project.
Although the University’s original application for the TownsWeb Digitisation Grant was unsuccessful, the team took up the organisation’s £1,000 match-funding opportunity, allowing the digitisation work to move forward.
“TownsWeb’s long track record of working closely with the heritage sector gave us confidence that they understood the specific needs, constraints, and priorities of collections like ours.”
- Caroline Walter, Head of Heritage Collections at Exeter University
Another important factor was the diversity of formats within the collection. During the rehousing process, the team discovered that the photographic materials were even more varied than originally anticipated, requiring specialist digitisation expertise.
Once the digitisation project is complete, the immediate priority will be to share the digital files with research networks across the University whose work aligns with the themes represented in the collection.
However, the long-term ambition is much larger. The team hopes to secure funding for a future project that will make the photographs publicly accessible online, accompanied by contextual information about the events depicted and the historical circumstances in which the images were created.
“Ultimately, I hope this work will develop into a substantial collaborative initiative - ideally involving partner organisations in the regions featured in the images.”
- Caroline Walter, Head of Heritage Collections at Exeter University
Bringing together perspectives from organisations and researchers in the regions represented within the photographs would help create a richer and more balanced interpretation of the archive.
By digitising these fragile glass plate negatives, the University of Exeter is preserving an important collection of archival photography while opening new opportunities for research into imperial history. As the project develops, the digitised images will help researchers, students, and communities engage more critically with the visual legacy of empire and the histories it represents.