Edition Tools for Digital Epigraphy (EDEp) is a project funded by the DFG that will explore the possibilities and needs of digital epigraphy, develop attractive incentives and excellent tools for its application, and apply these within the Ephemeris Epigraphica Electronica (EEE)—launched as part of the project—to a specific research project in the historical region of Gallia Belgica. The project will therefore be integrated into current research on Roman epigraphy in Germany and make a significant contribution to it. This open-access publication platform, EEE, will publish editions of inscriptions and research data for digital and analog reuse by the scholarly community.

The overall EDEp concept will not only advance research on Gallia Belgica but also to the regions of the Roman Empire that are being further explored epigraphically through several additional editions; at the same time, it will focus on four key areas to foster greater acceptance of XML/TEI-based publishing in the field of ancient epigraphy.
These are:

  1. the establishment of a publishing tool as a best-practice example for digital epigraphic editions, EEE = Ephemeris Epigraphica Electronica,
  2. the development of a DTS tool to improve the digital addressability and citability of inscriptions,
  3. the provision of a ‘cookbook’ along with online documentation on GitHub for digital editing, as well as critical analyses of tools and workflows to optimize epigraphic open-access publications and editions,
  4. presentations of the disciplinary research outputs and their digital added value, promotion of the digital tools in academic contexts, and publication of the outputs in e-journals and on GitHub.

Even during the project’s duration, data and the software solutions developed will be made available for reuse in accordance with the FAIR principles for data (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) for reuse. The integration of EDEp’s research outputs into epigraphic projects will allow for necessary adaptations and optional improvements—though not at no cost—but with relatively little effort, even after the funding period ends. The research outputs on Gallia Belgica, as well as the other epigraphic editions listed in the proposal and the research on these inscriptions, will close significant gaps in the analysis and study of Roman sources.

Editing Tools for Digital Epigraphy (EDEp). A Poster

  • Project duration: 2022–2024 (DFG), 2025–2026 (JGU)
  • Headquarters: JGU Mainz, Department 07 - Department of History: Ancient History & Cultural History of Antiquity
  • Contact in Heidelberg: Dr. Francisca Feraudi-Gruénais (Email Link)