Digital Cataloguing of Silk Heritage Collections: Untwisting Data

Museums produce massive quantities of heterogeneous datasets, which are often held inside their walls. These data increase when dealing with textile collection-based institutions which are usually small or medium-sized and lack resources or expertise to deal with the current digital trend. This paper explores how silk collections have historically been held in European museums by means of a mixed analysis, using an online survey that reveals the problems museums face when conserving silk fabrics, especially in their documentation, cataloguing, and the management of their digital data.