Manuscripts form an important source of the literary heritage in the world. They make use of different writing supports, such as paper, palm leaf, tree-bark, parchment, bamboo and other materials. Manuscripts also provide crucial historical sources for the study of past civilisations and modern societies.
However, in the course of history people’s care for these sources became less and manuscripts were discarded as unimportant, so that many people today view manuscripts as an obsolete object that may be of only fleeting relevance. Social and political conflicts can also make manuscripts to become damaged or destroyed. As a result, manuscripts are not uncommon to be kept in a haphazard manner regardless of the potential for destruction.
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he main method used by DREAMSEA is to gather as much information as possible from Southeast Asian societies about the existence of manuscripts. After proper assessment and checking, a DREAMSEA team will digitise the manuscripts to save the literary heritage and safeguard cultural diversity without having to pay high financial costs.
If you have an information about the existence of the manuscripts around you, please share it with us. You can email us; follow us through Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram; and promote hashtag #SaveOurManuscripts on your Social Media. We will follow up and be very happy to help you to preserve your historical manuscripts.