Preserving the Past: Gertrude Bell and Digital Archives with Professor Mark Jackson

In this episode of Heritage Türkiye, Mark Jackson (Professor of Byzantine Archaeology at Newcastle University and Honorary Secretary at the British Institute at Ankara) joins us to explore the enduring legacy of explorer, writer, archaeologist and diplomat Gertrude Bell and his role in the project to digitalise Bell's extensive archive, recently added to the UNESCO International Memory of the World register, which draws on her travels across Türkiye and West Asia. We also delve into the evolving role of digital archiving in historical research, examining how technology is transforming access to and interpretation of the past. The conversation also takes us into Professor Jackson's work in the field of Byzantine archaeology. Dr Mark Jackson is Professor of Byzantine Archaeology at Newcastle University and honorary secretary of the BIAA. Dr. Jackson is also co-curator of the Gertrude Bell Photographic Archive, a UNESCO International Memory of the World archive, which includes over 8000 images mostly taken by Gertrude Bell during her travels across the Ottoman Empire as a writer, archaeologist, and colonial diplomat before World War I.