FAQ

PHOTARCH is a photographic method and a curated database for archaeological artefacts. The method is a few principles that, followed, give uniform photographs that can be measured, again and again. Most objects in the archive are documented using the same controlled setup — lighting, angle, background, scale — so that images can be compared across collections, institutions, and time. The result is a machine-readable visual dataset, not just a photo gallery.

Primarily archaeologists, museum professionals, conservators, and researchers who need reliable visual documentation of objects. It is also useful for institutions that want their collections photographed the same way throughout and made openly accessible. Public access is free — no account required to browse the archive.

Photography without a shared method makes comparison impossible. An object photographed against a grey background at one institution looks fundamentally different from the same type of object documented on a black backdrop at another. PHOTARCH fixes the variables — background, lighting angle, colour reference, scale — so that visual data becomes comparable in the way that written metadata already is.

The method uses one key light at half past ten and 45° above, a pure white ground, a ColorChecker read at capture, and a scale from the object’s longest side measured with a digital caliper, or from the PHOTARCH board in the picture (a ruler only as a fallback). The plumb view, Front, is the main picture; the other sides — Back, Top, Down, Left, Right and the four diagonals — are documented as needed. All images are captured as RAW and delivered as TIFF and JPEG derivatives.

Yes. All objects in the archive are published openly. Images and metadata can be browsed and referenced without an account. Higher-resolution downloads, TIFF exports and the research tools need an account, which is free.

Not directly. PHOTARCH only publishes images captured according to the method — the point is precisely that all images share the same controlled conditions.

Each object record includes: inventory number, object type, material, technique, dimensions (physical, derived from the photographic scale), find context, institution, collection, period, and geolocation where applicable. Technical image metadata — resolution, colour profile, file format, capture date — is also stored.

Yes. Every object in the archive has a persistent ARK identifier (NAAN 73195), designed for stable long-term citation in publications and databases. The identifier will resolve even if the URL structure of the platform changes.

Credit the institution or archive that holds the object. Adding “/PHOTARCH” is welcome, though not required. If citing a specific object, include the ARK identifier alongside the credit.

Nothing. The archive is an open commons: browsing needs no account at all, and a free account unlocks image downloads (JPEG with embedded metadata and scale, and TIFF masters), favourites, collections, canvases, private-link sharing, comparison with scale alignment and ICC profiles. The whole dataset as CSV needs no account at all. There is no subscription for individuals. Institutions working as a team use the organisation subscription that covers the capture tools. What an account gets you →

Each published image carries the licence recorded for it, shown on the object page. PHOTARCH claims no copyright in the photographs: the rights belong to whoever made them or to the institution that holds them. The physical objects belong to their holding institution, and they are published with its knowledge and agreement.

PHOTARCH is developed and operated by Milvus Productions AB, a Swedish company based in Ystad. The method was developed by Daniel Lindskog, a photographer and archaeologist, to address the absence of a consistent photographic standard in the field.

Write to info@photarch.com.