EpiSearch. Identifying Ancient Inscriptions in Epigraphic Manuscripts

Abstract

Epigraphic documents are an essential source of evidence for our knowledge of the ancient world. Nonetheless, a significant number of inscriptions have not been preserved in their material form. In fact, their texts can only be recovered thanks to handwritten materials and, in particular, the so-called epigraphic manuscripts. EpiSearch is a pilot project that explores the application of digital technologies deployed to retrieve the epigraphic evidence found in these sources. The application of Handwritten Text Recognition (HTR) to epigraphic manuscripts is a challenging task, given the nature and graphic layout of these documents. Yet, our research shows that, even with some limits, HTR technologies can be used successfully.