DigItalia, a journal dedicated to digital technologies in cultural heritage, published by ICCU since 2005, is part of the Italian landscape of specialized periodical publishing with the aim of promoting study and critical discussion on the application of digital technologies to cultural heritage. The journal addresses these topics from an international and interdisciplinary perspective. The journal is recognized by ANVUR as a Class A periodical for the following areas: 11/A1 – Medieval History, 11/A2 – Modern History, 11/A4 – Book and Document Studies and Historical-Religious Studies, and 10/A1 – Archaeology. It is also included in the lists of scientific publications for all areas 10 – Ancient, Philological-Literary and Art-Historical Studies, and 11 – Historical, Philosophical and Educational Studies. Since 2012, the journal has been published on OJS, an open-access platform that ensures search functionality across metadata and full text. The platform has recently been updated, becoming fully accessible and improving the user consultation experience.
The Authors publishing their contributions on this journal agree to the following conditions: The Authors detain intellectual property rights of their work and transfer the right of first publication of the work to the journal, under the following Licence: Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0). This Licence allows third parties to share the work by attributing it to the Authors and clarifying that the work has been first published on this journal. Authors can sign other, non-exclusive licence agreements for the dissemination of the published word (e.g. to deposit it in an institutional archive or publish it in a monography), provided that they state that the work has been first published on this journal. Authors can disseminate their work online (e.g. in institutional repositories or on their personal websites) after its publication, to potentially enhance knowledge sharing, foster productive intellectual exchange and increase citations.
A Journal for Interdisciplinary Dialogue
DIGITALIA 2005-2025: testimonianze, riflessioni e prospettive
Copyright (c) 2025 Simonetta Buttò https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Copyright (c) 2025 Marco Paoli https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
A Past That Is Already Future: Twenty Years of DigItalia
Copyright (c) 2025 Giuliano Genetasio https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Europeana Climate Action Community and the path to regenerative digital transformation
Copyright (c) 2025 Evangelia Paschalidou https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.it
The Treatment of Collections, Owners, and Provenance in the SBN Index
As part of project Indice 3 relating to the re-engineering and evolution of the National Library Service (SBN) Index, the Central Institute for the Union Catalogue of Italian Libraries (ICCU) has provided for the possibility of centrally managing the collections of names/entities present in SBN libraries, which until now have only been managed at a local level. Specifically, the Institute is developing the Fondi-Possessori-Esemplari (Collections-Owners-Copies) project, which links these elements together. The centralisation in the SBN Index of information relating to copies, collections, provenance/owners and mutual links will enable shared management with all SBN libraries through an expansion of the current structure. To date, each SBN hub that processes this type of data does so completely independently, generating a proliferation of dissimilar systems and offering its users a very diverse and partial search option. With this new project, which is important not only for the SBN community, users will have a single point of access for integrated searches on collections, owners and copies.
Copyright (c) 2025 Maria Cristina Mataloni, Alice Semboloni https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Digital Humanities at the National University Library of Turin: on the BINARI project and more
Since 2022, the National University Library of Turin has been involved in research and promotion activities focusing on a number of valuable manuscripts belonging to its collections. Such activities are carried out in close collaboration with the Interdepartmental Research Centre for Digital Scholarship for the Humanities (DISH) at the University of Turin and they include the projects Il Plinio di Mantegna and BINARI: La Biblioteca Nazionale per Aristotele. Digitalizzazione ed edizione digitale delle traduzioni latine umanistico-rinascimentali dell’Etica Nicomachea di Aristotele nei codici della Biblioteca Nazionale di Torino, both funded by PNRR resources. In particular, BINARI provides a digital edition of the manuscripts containing Latin translations of Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics by Leonardo Bruni (ms. D V 33, E IV 36, G III 16, G IV 32 and H V 16) and John Argyropoulos (ms. E III 25), while the former project aims to offer a digital edition of the famous illuminated manuscript of Pliny the Elder’s Naturalis Historia (ms. J.I.22-23), which testifies the reception of Andrea Mantegna’s art. This article aims to describe both these projects, outlining their various phases in order to highlight information technology potential not only as regards the conservation and preservation of manuscripts heritage, but also their study by a specialists audience, promoting an interdisciplinary approach and the dissemination to a wider public.
Copyright (c) 2025 Alessia Grillone https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Cultural Heritage Accessibility through Multisensory Interactions - Updates from the MuseIT project
As the MuseIT project (Multisensory, User-centred, Shared Cultural Experiences through Interactive Technologies) reaches its final stage, this article offers an overview of its key achievements in promoting accessibility and inclusion in cultural heritage. Funded by the Horizon Europe programme, MuseIT brought together a diverse consortium of researchers, technologists, and cultural stakeholders to develop innovative tools for inclusive digital culture. By leveraging multimodal interfaces, immersive technologies, and AI-based accessibility solutions, the project enabled more meaningful cultural experiences for individual swith sensory, cognitive, and physical disabilities. This contribution highlights the main outcomes of MuseIT, emphasizing its interdisciplinary methods, community involvement, and ethical considerations, while laying the groundwork for future progress in inclusive technology and cultural engagement; a particular focus is dedicated to the event organized within the framework of the project, held in Rome on May 14, 2025, at the National Central Library of Rome, titled “Heritage Without Barriers“.
Copyright (c) 2025 Flavia Massara, Nasrine Olson, Vasilis Papadopoulos, Maria Kyrou, Albert Meroño-Peñuela, Moa Johansson, Vyacheslav Tykhonov, James Hanlon https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
The impact of the European Accessibility Act on the cultural sector: obligations and opportunities for archives, museums and libraries
Starting from June 28, 2025, the European Accessibility Act (EU Directive 2019/882) introduced significant digital accessibility requirements for cultural institutions, both public and private. After providing a regulatory and conceptual framework on the topic of digital accessibility, the paper traces the evolution of European and national legislation, focusing on the interaction between the new directive and the previous directive 2016/2102. It then analyzes the direct and indirect implications for cultural institutions, distinguishing between certain areas of application. It highlights how accessibility should not be considered a mere technical or regulatory constraint, but rather an opportunity to strengthen the democratic and inclusive role of cultural institutions. In a context that is increasingly attentive to disability and social inclusion, the directive, despite presenting some interpretative challenges, offers a unique opportunity to rethink accessibility as a design paradigm and democratic mission. The essay concludes by emphasizing the urgency of cultural adaptation, aimed at fully integrating accessibility into the digital and inclusive strategies of cultural sites.
Copyright (c) 2025 Stefano Allegrezza https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Early Modern Digital Itineraries: The Italian Core Set
Small, cheaply published itinerary books written by professional travelers indicated precisely which routes to utilize, where to stay, which sites to see, and even provided tools for navigating foreign customs, language, and currency in the early modern period. Early Modern Digital Itineraries (EMDigIt) transforms itinerary books printed from the sixteenth through eighteenth centuries into a unique dataset for the study of historical mobility. This piece describes the workflow for semi-automatic transcription, data tidying, and linking historical place names to modern geographic data. It discusses use cases of the Italian core set, which consists of eight itinerary books published in the Italian language and featuring more than four thousand waypoints. This data is freely available for textual, spatial, and network digital exploration and analysis.
Copyright (c) 2025 Rachel Midura https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Libraries and digital transformation: an e-learning training course organized by the National School of Cultural Heritage and Activities and the Italian Library Association
Copyright (c) 2025 Marzia Piccininno, Giovanni Bergamin, Gaia Caltavituro, Andrea Razza https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.it
Advantages and Limitations of Solid Modelling Applied to Archaeology
The aim of this contribution is to consider the development and use of three-dimensional (3D) digital models in archaeological research. Realising a 3D model of an existing (or planned) artefact makes it possible to manage and combine so much information that the model can be considered the virtual counterpart, the so-called digital twin, of the represented physical system. In archaeology, through digital twins, it is possible to interact and study sites or artefacts and, for research purposes, verify hypotheses about their historical and architectural phases. Furthermore, a 3D model can be a valuable tool for the dissemination of heritage. These issues will be explored starting from a series of experiences of virtual reconstructions of medieval sites in the city of Benevento, an urban reality characterised by multiple transformations and settlement events. The procedure that led to the implementation of these products, the results obtained in terms of understanding and analysing the sites and the prospects for the valorisation and dissemination of scientific data will be illustrated, also considering the limits and criticalities of this type of research.
Copyright (c) 2025 Silvana Rapuano https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
The Museum in the Digital Age: Sensitive Technologies for an Augmented Humanity
The contemporary museum is increasingly called upon to engage with a digitalized public, which is also more diverse in terms of age, skills, and expectations. This article explores the role of digital technologies in museum storytelling processes, emphasizing the importance of a critical and conscious approach—never invasive and always centered on the visitor’s experience. Through several exemplary cases—M9 in Mestre, the Museo Laboratorio della Mente, the Piccolo Museo del Diario, and the NuvolaProject’s augmented reality project—the discussion illustrates how digital tools can make the invisible visible. These technologies help generate experiences that are, to varying degrees, empathetic and accessible, not replacing but integrating traditional museological frameworks. The museum thus reasserts its role as a place of connection, imagination, and awareness, where the presence of digital technologies can successfully combine scientific authority with narrative sensitivity. In conclusion, the article advocates for a careful and sustainable use of technology—one aimed at cultivating a museum ecosystem that is more open, accessible, and profoundly human.
Copyright (c) 2025 Claudia Pecoraro https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Collections, Catalogues, Missals. From the National Central Library in Florence
This paper offers a brief history of the manuscript collections of the National Central Library of Florence and a list of the manuscript missals identified so far in the Conventi Soppressi, Fondo nazionale, Magliabechiano, Nuove Accessioni fonds. It adds observations on the catalographic resources about these manuscripts. A short appendix presents preliminary notes for a study of the books arrived to the Magliabechiana Library in 1789 from the so called Patrimonio Ecclesiastico.
Atti del convegno "La comunità in preghiera. MOL Liturgica e la catalogazione dei messali pretridentini". Seconda sessione
Copyright (c) 2025 David Speranzi, Marc Ertoran, Michaelangiola Marchiaro https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
MeMo – Memory of Montecassino, MOL Liturgica and the missal Montecassino, Archivio dell’Abbazia, 127
MeMo – Memory of Montecassino is the result of the multi-year research activity on the ancient Cassinese codices, documents and printed books conducted by the scholars of the LIBeR – Libro e Ricerca Laboratory of the Department of Humanities of the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio. The project, winner of a PRIN Call in 2020 and further supported by the Lazio Region, also sees the collaboration of the Sapienza University of Rome and the University of Catania. The aim of the project is the creation of a digital library that combines digital reproduction with the cataloging of manuscripts, medieval documents and incunabula preserved at the Abbey of Montecassino. The manuscripts preserved at the Abbey Archive also include some missals that can be the testing ground of MOL Liturgica. This experimentation was carried out for the missal and calendar Montecassino, Archivio dell’Abbazia, 127: the results and some general reflections on the use of the MOL Liturgica procedure are presented.
Copyright (c) 2025 Nicola Tangari https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Collaborating to Improve Outcomes. Possible Perspectives for Dialogue and Sharing
Atti del convegno "La comunità in preghiera. MOL Liturgica e la catalogazione dei messali pretridentini". Terza sessione
Copyright (c) 2025 Angelo Restaino https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
The Biblioteca Ambrosiana and MOL-liturgica
The article presents the nature and history of the Biblioteca Ambrosiana, with particular attention to the types of book collections it holds. While books with liturgical content have never been a specific focus, they are nonetheless represented. The article also refers to the current presence in the catalogue of pre-Tridentine liturgical manuscripts and printed works, and to the prospects for collaboration with the MOL Liturgica project.
Copyright (c) 2025 Federico Gallo https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
In Verona even books are monuments. The Capitulary Library of Verona in the past, present and future
The Capitulary Library of Verona traces its origins to a Scriptorium linked to the Canons of the Cathedral, whose presence is attested as far back as the year 517 AD. Real treasures of Western culture are kept here. For centuries the library was entrusted to the care of the Chapter of the Canons of Verona Cathedral, but the changing requirements for the protection and enhancement of the heritage have made it necessary to evolve the organisation. For this reason, the Fondazione Biblioteca Capitolare di Verona ETS was established in 2019, whose founding partners are the Chapter of Canons and Bauli S.p.A. The Foundation drew up a Strategic Plan 2022-2026 to identify the guidelines for an integrated path between research, conservation and museum renovation. It opened new exhibition spaces to the public in September 2023 and is working on a project to re-functionalise spaces to enhance scientific research, exhibition spaces and the creation of a cultural hub.
Copyright (c) 2025 Timoty Leonardi https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Towards an integrated reconstruction: the digitised liturgical heritage
The article illustrates the potential of the collaboration between the portals Lodovico Media Library and BeWeB. After an initial general overview, the contribution examines the advantages of this cooperation and, in particular, the integration of ecclesiastical and non-ecclesiastical heritage. Finally, the potential related to the MOL Liturgica project and the possible impacts in terms of knowledge and mapping of evidence about the pre-Tridentine liturgy are outlined.
Copyright (c) 2025 Matteo Al Kalak https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
International Cooperation among Ecclesiastical and Theological Libraries: The Role of BETH (Bibliothèques Européennes de Théologie)
The article explores the importance of cooperation between ecclesiastical and theology libraries, with a focus on the role of BETH (Bibliothèques Européennes de Théologie). Founded in the second half of the 20th century, BETH developed as an ecumenical network to foster the exchange of resources, experiences and good practices between librarians of theological institutions in Europe. In a context marked by common challenges - digitisation, lack of resources, need for upskilling - BETH represents a positive model of cultural and professional cooperation. The contribution highlights how openness to European dialogue is an opportunity for growth and revitalisation for ecclesiastical and theological libraries, advocating for a more concrete development of shared projects and closer integration between libraries, archives and museums.
Atti del convegno "La comunità in preghiera. MOL Liturgica e la catalogazione dei messali pretridentini". Quarta sessione
Copyright (c) 2025 Stefano Maria Malaspina https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
The MOL Digital Liturgica Project: BeWeB in a Global Context
The MOL Liturgica Digitale project aims to digitize and enhance pre-Tridentine liturgical manuscripts, combining technological innovation with an interdisciplinary approach. By adopting international standards, such as the IIIF protocol, and integrating with the BeWeB platform, the project ensures global access to resources that would otherwise be difficult to consult. Collaboration with experts from various cultural heritage fields—librarians, archivists, paleographers, and art historians—as well as technology specialists, allows the project to tackle challenges effectively, ensuring high-quality results. Furthermore, the project promotes international cooperation, expanding the visibility of the liturgical heritage of Italian ecclesiastical institutions and fostering comparative and interdisciplinary research. With a vision that unites tradition and modernity, MOL Liturgica Digitale stands as a virtuous example of cultural enhancement at a global level.
Copyright (c) 2025 Sergio Bellini, Adriano Belfiore https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
The Digital Vatican Library: paths and perspectives
This contribution briefly retraces the steps that led the Vatican Apostolic Library to launch its manuscript digitization campaign (which began in 2010), and its development through various projects made possible by the support of benefactors. It also highlights how the Library may contribute to the MOL Liturgica project. The paper includes some reflections on how the Library has managed the changes brought about by digitization—balancing radical innovation with a continued commitment to the preservation and scholarly study of the manuscript heritage. Within the digitization workflow developed by the Vatican Library, particular emphasis is placed on the preliminary phase of manuscript analysis and study.
Copyright (c) 2025 Claudia Montuschi https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Lapidem pretiosum huius nostrae civitatis. The liturgical heritage of Cesena and the Malatestiana Library between tradition of studies and digital dissemination
The Malatestiana Library was built in the mid-15th century inside the Convent of Saint Francis by Malatesta Novello, lord of Cesena, and it is today one of the most famous humanist convent libraries in the world. In its 570 years of history, the Library has progressively enriched its collections with numerous liturgical manuscripts, including the choir books of Cardinal Bessarion and the choir library of the Cathedral. Over time, these materials have been the subject of research, exhibitions and digitisation projects, which have brought them to the attention of the international scientific community. The essay offers an overview of the liturgical manuscripts preserved by the public and religious institutions of the Cesena area, as well as an outline of the cataloguing and promotional activities carried out by the Malatestiana Library in the last decades and freely available online by the users.
Copyright (c) 2025 Lucrezia Signorello https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Work around. Italian experiences on Missals
Copyright (c) 2025 Francesca Maria D'Agnelli https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Training Experts in Liturgical Manuscript Studies. The Master's Program in Description, Digitization and Valorization of Medieval Liturgical Manuscripts
This paper presents the new two-year second-level Master’s Program in “Description, Digitization and Valorization of Medieval Liturgical Manuscripts”, promoted by the University of Tuscia and the National Office for Ecclesiastical Cultural Heritage and Religious Buildings (BCE) of the Italian Episcopal Conference (CEI), in collaboration with other Italian universities and national institutions. Conceived as a training outcome of the project for the census and digitization of pre-Tridentine sacramentaries and missals preserved throughout Italy, the Master aims to train highly specialized professionals in codicological, paleographical, and musical description, as well as in the digital valorization of liturgical manuscripts. The curriculum includes online teaching, internships, workshops, and individual assignments, with a strong focus on national cataloguing standards and digital technologies for cultural heritage.
Atti del convegno "La comunità in preghiera. MOL Liturgica e la catalogazione dei messali pretridentini". Prima sessione
Copyright (c) 2025 Gilda Nicolai https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Europeana: serving the future of the European Cultural Heritage
Europeana is a European Union initiative aimed at supporting the digital transformation of the cultural heritage sector. Europeana’s mission is to develop skills, tools and strategies for European cultural heritage institutions so that they are able to embrace the changes taking place in the digital world by fostering innovation. In this brief account, the author outlines news regarding the most recent evolutions of Europeana, which over the years has gone from being a portal and then a platform to becoming a data space so as to better serve the future of European cultural institutions.
Copyright (c) 2025 Martina Bagnoli https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Designing in context. The MOL Liturgica Working Community
This paper outlines the work carried out to date in the various areas, levels, and phases of the MOL Liturgica messali manoscritti project, aimed at creating a reliable and validated platform for cataloguing data and promoting the project itself. It discusses the selection of data (from repertories and questionnaires sent to ecclesiastical cultural institutions), the fieldwork related to the registry of institutions, the accurate identification of manuscript collections, and the project's communication strategy on BeWeB. The paper concludes with an overview of the future developments of MOL Liturgica.
Copyright (c) 2025 Paola Sverzellati https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
From Adam’s Rib: MOL Liturgica 2019–2024
The contribution retraces the phases that led to the creation of the back-end systemcalled MOL Liturgica, designed for the analytical cataloging of liturgical manuscripts, primarily calendars and missals. It also presents the theoretical considerations and challenges encountered during the process, and concludes by illustrating the main features of the application.
Copyright (c) 2025 Elisabetta Caldelli https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Based on Victor Leroquais’s catalogue of the sacramentaries and missals in the public libraries of France, the paper focuses on certain aspects of the missal produced in the French-speaking area, such as the type of missal (plenary, votive, festive), its possible connection with other types of books and the internal organisation of its contents. The need to clarify the relationship between the material structure of the manuscript and the text is emphasised, and some peculiarities in the indication of the solemnity of feasts are highlighted, as well as some problems of dating missals on the basis of the sanctoral.
Copyright (c) 2025 Laura Albiero https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
The MOL Liturgica Messali project is part of research on the liturgical sources of Latin Churches in the pre-Tridentine era, drawing on traditions that have shaped the history of liturgy, inspired by models such as the Jesuit Bollandists and the Solesmes monks. The most efficient research and publication centers for liturgical texts in the 19th and 20th centuries were the European Benedictine abbeys. In the second half of the last century, these important cultural hubs began to decline, and only partially were replaced by university research clusters or specialized cultural institutions. Today, it is crucial to work in groups with contributions from specialists in different disciplines, relying on the rigor of a common methodology. The initiative aims to create a multidisciplinary network of experts, overcoming current fragmentation and ensuring continuity and quality in research.
Copyright (c) 2025 Giacomo Baroffio https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it
Understanding to Pass On. The MOL Liturgica Project on Manuscript Missals
Copyright (c) 2025 Lucia Negrini https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/it/deed.it