Migrating special collections to linked open data environments

Abstract

The migration of special collections to linked open data environments represents a paradigm shift that extends far beyond technical metadata conversion, touching upon the epistemological foundations, professional practices, and ethical commitments of research libraries. This article examines the intellectual, practical, and organisational dimensions of transitioning rare books, manuscripts, archives, and other unique cultural heritage materials from traditional siloed catalogues to the interconnected semantic web of linked open data. It argues that the case for such migration rests upon three interrelated pillars: the enhancement of scholarly utility through large- scale aggregation and computational analysis, the preservation and expression of archival complexity through rich relational modelling, and the advancement of accessibility and social justice through open, reusable, and community-enrichable data. The article critically engages with the significant obstacles that libraries confront in this undertaking, including the heterogeneity of legacy metadata, the demands of long-term sustainability and persistent identification, and the profound human challenges of professional culture, cross-training, and interdisciplinary collaboration. Drawing upon exemplars from major national libraries and smaller institutional projects, the discussion advocates for a phased, iterative, and community-engaged approach that prioritises careful data modelling, user-centred evaluation, and incremental scaling. Ultimately, the article contends that linked open data migration is not merely a technical upgrade but an act of intellectual hospitality that transforms special collections from guarded repositories into participatory nodes within a global knowledge network, ensuring their continued relevance and vitality in an era of computational, networked, and democratised scholarship.