The epigraphic archive of the Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum was established in the 1880s at the Royal Prussian Academy of Sciences.
Squeezes
The central element of the historical CIL archive consists of around 20,000 squeezes (ectypa) produced in the second half of the 19th century and the first two decades of the 20th century. The majority are paper squeezes, but there are also tracings, plaster casts and copies, impressions in sealing wax or tin foil, and tracings on gelatine foil. More recent additions include latex squeezes of Carmina Latina Epigraphica from the city of Rome and drawings of milestone texts on PVC foil.
For inscriptions that are now lost or have been completely or partially destroyed, the ectypa are often the only form of documentation. They also contain direct information about the materiality of the inscription, the style and depth of the writing, and the shape, texture and decoration of the monument.
Scheden
The CIL has Scheden in the amount of 650 storage boxes. A Schede was created for each of the inscriptions edited in the CIL up to the First World War. The term primarily refers to the sheet that was used as a printing template for typesetting. Other papers are often attached to this with a pin – the paper clip was not invented until the end of the 19th century. These are mostly annotated excerpts from older editions, correspondence, drawings of texts and monuments, or small-format documentation in the form of squeezes or tracings.
Photographs
The CIL archive contains photographs of more than 35,000 inscriptions from the period after the Second World War. In addition to photographic prints, negatives and slides, in particular the collection of digital photographs is growing rapidly. These are primarily photographs of inscriptions edited by the CIL. In addition, there are photographs of reconstructions and drawings of findings documentation. Furthermore, images are available that show the larger context of inscriptions and their architectural integration. Finally, topographical photographs and landscape images provide the overall framework.
The photo archive contains photographs of inscriptions from Rome, Italy and the provinces of the Roman Empire. It is also heavily influenced by estates such as those of Hans-Georg Kolbe and Géza Alföldy, so that certain regions or groups of inscriptions are particularly well documented in photographs.
