Transcription Conventions forThe History of the Accademia di San Luca, c. 1590-1635: Documents from the Archivio di Stato di Roma
The document transcriptions follow a modified version of Alessandro Guidotti's "Le norme di trascrizione," Rivista d'arte 37 (1984): 377–399. The transcribers have modified or elected to follow different norms in the following instances:
Line breaks follow the structure of the document; no slashes are inserted for line breaks even if a word is broken. Line breaks that occur within a single word are indicated by a hyphen.
Except for hyphens to indicate broken words, no accents or other punctuation marks are added to the transcriptions.
A change of folio is indicated by the new folio number in brackets. A catchword is repeated at each instance if it appears on both the verso of one folio and the recto of the next.
The caret (^) indicates the beginning and end of an insertion of text by the notary. The inserted text appears in the transcription where it was intended to be read, not in the margin.
If a letter "J" appears in the original document, it is transcribed as a letter "I" so as to preserve Latin orthographic normalization.
Personal names, both first and last, are capitalized; otherwise original orthography is maintained.
Two names joined together are separated (for example, "Pietropaolo" is transcribed "Pietro Paolo").
Abbreviated first names are not spelled out. Abbreviated last names are spelled out when the reading of the name is certain. This convention applies to signatures following documents as well as to document text (for example, "O. Sars." is transcribed "O. Saravezzius"). Last names beginning with "de," "degli," "dei," "del," "dell," or "della" follow the spelling in the documents.
Notaries are represented by their Italian names in the document summaries and search menus. Thus,
- Giovanni Antonio Moschenio
- Tommaso Salvatore
- Alessandro Saravezzi
- Marco Aurelio Saravezzi
- Ottaviano Saravezzi
- Erasto Spannocchia
- Lorenzo Tigrino
In titles of works of art, only the first word is capitalized. When space between words is elided, they are separated for clarity. Thus "cenacolo" becomes "Cenacolo," and "eccehom*o" becomes "Ecce hom*o."
Expansions of abbreviated words other than proper names are supplied in italics. Abbreviations are retained for forms of address (for example, "M" for "Messer" or "S.V." for "Signoria vostra") and for "quondam" (abbreviated "q"). If these forms are spelled out in a document, they remain as such.
Abbreviations for monetary units are transcribed as they appear in the document, not as modern abbreviations (for example, "ba." is not used for biaocchi unless it appears in the original document). When a symbol is used in place of the word for a monetary unit, it is spelled out.
When a numeric adjective is given in arabic numerical form, it is spelled out (for example, "secondo" instead of "2.o").
Unclear, Illegible, Missing, or Implied Words and Characters
The first time a hole appears in a document it is footnoted; subsequently within the document holes are indicated with brackets. Similarly, ink spots that obscure the text are footnoted. Words are footnoted as "uncertain" or "unclear" when the transcribers are unsure of the orthography. If the transcribers know what the missing letters or words are, brackets are omitted and italics are used to indicate letters or words supplied.
Italics in square brackets are used to spell out a word that is either abbreviated and illegible or missing in the document if the transcribers are certain of the intention.
Three ellipsis dots in square brackets indicate illegible and unknown words or letters.
Three ellipsis dots in parentheses indicate a blank space in the original (for example, a space for a name that was never filled in).
If the date of a document is not written on the specific folio, but is known from a previous one, the date is included (as it appears originally) in the transcription in brackets immediately preceding the text.
Devoti, Joannis.Dei et apostolicae sedis gratia episcopi olim Ananiensis dein archiepiscopi Carthaginensis Institutionum Canonicarum. Book 4, T. III, Venice, 1827.
Figliola, Federico Maria Trastulli Appolloni. “I Registri Parrochiali del Rione Campo Marzio nel Periodo 1650-1700: Artisti e Maestranze.” PhD diss., Universita’ Degli Studi di Roma “La Sapienza”, 2006/2007.
Nussdorfer, Laurie. Brokers of Public Trust: Notaries in Early Modern Rome. Baltimore, 2009.
Nussdorfer, Laurie. Civic Politics in the Rome of Urban VIII. Princeton, 1992.
Nussdorfer, Laurie. “The Vacant See: Ritual and Protest in Early Modern Rome.” The Sixteenth Century Journal 18, no. 2 (Summer 1987): 173-189.
Paetus, Lucas. I.C. De iudiciaria formula Capitolini fori ad S.P.Q.R. Book 9. Romae: In Aedibus Populi Romani apud Paulum Manutium, 1567.
Wahrmund, Ludwig. Quellen zur Geschichte des römisch-kanonischen Processes im Mittelalter. Volume I, Book, 8: Das Formularium des Martinus de Fano. Innsbruck, 1907.
Zuccagni-Orlandini, Attilio. Corografia fisica, storica e statistica dell' Italia e delle sue isole corredata di un atlante di mappe geografiche e topografiche. Volume 10, Florence, 1843.
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The article you're referencing discusses transcription conventions used for historical documents, particularly those from the Accademia di San Luca between 1590-1635. It outlines specific guidelines for transcribing these documents, ensuring accuracy and preservation of original content while standardizing certain elements for clarity and consistency.
Here's a breakdown of the concepts mentioned in the article:
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Transcription Conventions: These are rules governing the transcription process. The conventions include:
- Formatting line breaks to match the document's structure.
- Not using slashes for line breaks within words.
- Omitting accents and punctuation marks, except for hyphens indicating broken words.
- Indicating new folio numbers in brackets when there's a change.
- Using the caret symbol (^) to signify inserted text by a notary.
- Substituting "J" with "I" to maintain Latin orthographic normalization.
- Capitalizing personal names while retaining original orthography.
- Handling two joined names by separating them.
- Maintaining or spelling out abbreviated names based on certainty.
- Preserving the spelling of names beginning with specific prefixes.
- Representing notaries with their Italian names.
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Works of Art: Guidelines for formatting titles of art pieces, where only the first word is capitalized. Clarification of elided spaces between words for better readability.
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Common Abbreviations: Addressing expansions of abbreviated words, especially in titles or forms of address. Retention of original abbreviations for monetary units, even if they differ from modern abbreviations.
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Unclear or Missing Text: Addressing instances where text is unclear, illegible, missing, or implied. This includes footnoting holes, ink spots, uncertain words, supplying missing letters or words, and indicating illegible or missing content through italics, brackets, ellipses, or parentheses.
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Bibliography: Referencing various sources and texts utilized for historical context or research. This includes citing books, dissertations, and scholarly articles relevant to the subject matter.
Understanding and applying these transcription conventions is crucial for accurately transcribing and interpreting historical documents, ensuring consistency and reliability in preserving their content.
