IIIF (Image Interoperability Framework) allows for deep zoom, comparison, and annotation of digitized materials. Many of the Library’s digital images are IIIF-enabled.
IIIF allows you to use Harvard’s digitized objects side-by-side with ones from other institutions. You can also use them with transcription tools like From the Page or annotation tools like AnnotationsX or Omeka.
How to use IIIF Manifests
A IIIF manifest is the package that contains all the information related to a particular digital object, including the image itself as well as the metadata.
The easiest way to find Harvard’s IIIF manifests is to use Harvard Digital Collections. IIIF manifest links are available for most publicly available, digitized items in this system. More about IIIF manifests.
From Harvard Digital Collections
Use the “Copy Manifest” link under the IIIF logo in the Tools & Related Links section. See image, right.
From Harvard Library Viewer
If you arrive at the Viewer from HOLLIS or another search system, to get the manifest link, copy the URL of the manifest from your browser’s address bar and edit it so it follows our format. This removes the viewer presentation and presents the raw file, known as a JSON.
Edit the URL:
- Delete /view from the URL
- If present, delete all of the characters at the end of the URL starting with the dollar sign
Example (remove in bold font):
- Viewer URL: https://iiif.lib.harvard.edu/manifests/view/ids:11927378$1i
- JSON URL: https://iiif.lib.harvard.edu/manifests/ids:11927378
