The TII Digital Heritage Collections: playing with the data

Abstract

Since 2017, Transport infrastructure Ireland (TII) has been disseminating archaeological excavation reports and other data from its projects via the TII Digital Heritage Collections (https://repository.dri.ie/catalog/v6936m966), which is hosted by the Digital Repository of Ireland (DRI). The Collections consist of an ever-increasing reservoir of knowledge comprising excavation reports, archaeo-geophysical survey reports, audio books, 3D laser scans, and other resources that have been digitally preserved and made accessible online by the DRI. In 2025, TII launched the TII Digital Heritage Collections Portal, which enhances access to the Collections via a web map interface designed to appeal to the general public and heritage professionals alike. The new Portal (view here) uses web GIS technology to extend the utility of the existing Collections. By facilitating advanced searches and bulk downloads, the application essentially allows users to ‘play’ with the underlying metadata that lies at the Collections’ heart. Presented as an interactive map, it offers users multiple ways to select and view data, which they can then export in several formats for use in their own research. In addition to offering a new gateway to the reports in the Collections, this initiative represents the first time that multiple metadata records can be exported and incorporated into users own GIS platforms, enabling the creation of new web GIS resources using the entire Collections or samples thereof. In tandem with the ongoing development of the Collections and the new Portal, TII has commissioned numerous StoryMaps that creatively combine mapping technology, narrative text and multimedia content to tell compelling stories. The reports in the Collections often form the core of these StoryMaps, which in turn provide an additional playful entryway to the Collections. The latest StoryMap specifically explores the operation of the TII Digital Heritage Collections through the archaeology of the M7 Portlaoise–Castletown/M8 Portlaoise–Cullahill Motorway Scheme in County Laois. This paper will spotlight how broad access to the Collections and the underlying metadata has been achieved, with the objective of drawing more users to the resource and fostering new research that transforms our understanding of the island’s archaeological heritage.