The Society of American Archivists (www.archivists.org) outlines very eloquently the purpose and importance of the archival profession. One's account of previous man's experience develops our knowledge and understanding as a society. "The veracity and accuracy of the account, however, is totally dependent upon the surviving record at hand—documents, manuscripts, letters, publications, photos, and memorabilia—from which the story must often be pieced together and reconstructed, item by item, clue by clue".
The archivist is considered to be part scientist and part doctor as they repair and preserve, maintain and protect. This is necessary in order to protect the experiences and creations of our ancestors; to maintain the record, for purposes of knowledge, education and ultimately and increased wisdom. The questions of our past provides insight, "depth and texture' into our often sparse account of the past and provide meaning and direction for the future. Ralph Waldo Emerson argues that "there is properly no history, only biography". Whether this is true or not, are access to this history or biography is through the archives contained in the world and unfortunately it was not until relatively recently that we understood the importance of archival preservation.
No comments:
Post a Comment