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Exploring Italy’s rich historical archives can reveal fascinating stories about its people, culture, and events. However, deciphering handwritten texts is no small task, especially when dealing with old, intricate scripts in the Italian alphabet. From personal letters and official records to literary manuscripts, learning to read the different Italian handwriting styles used by scribes across the centuries requires time and expertise.
Thankfully, AI transcription models on platforms like Transkribus have made it significantly easier to work with historical Italian documents. These models, trained on a wide range of texts and diverse Italian hands, help researchers, archivists, and historians bring Italy’s past to life with greater accuracy and efficiency. In this post, we will look at four public AI models that can assist with reading and transcribing old Italian handwriting.
The Transkribus Italian Handwriting M1 model can read 16th-century handwritten texts such as this one. © Unknown author via Wikimedia Commons
1. Transkribus Italian Handwriting M1
The Transkribus Italian Handwriting M1 model is a versatile tool for transcribing Italian hands from a wide time range, spanning the 16th to 19th centuries. Trained on different styles of old handwriting, it is particularly adept at handling cursive scripts and semi-formal documents, such as letters, journals, and administrative texts.
This model is a go-to resource for anyone working with civil records or correspondence from Italy’s early modern period. Its flexibility and accuracy make it suitable for researchers across disciplines and working on different record types, from genealogists tracing family histories to historians studying social and cultural trends.
Try out this model: Transkribus Italian Handwriting M1
This model from Mediobanca is ideal for process administrative and corporate documents. © Archivio Storico Mediobanca
2. Italian - 20th Century Minutes of Mediobanca's Board of Directors & Exec. Committee
The Italian - 20th Century Minutes of Mediobanca's Board of Directors & Exec. Committee model has been tailored specifically for Italian records from the banking sector. It focuses on transcribing the handwritten minutes of Mediobanca’s board meetings from the 20th century. While the training material is highly specialised, its performance extends well to other administrative and corporate documents from the same period.
Archivists working with modern Italian handwriting will appreciate the model’s capability to handle formal scripts and structured texts written in a range of Italian hands. From company archives to legal records, this tool is invaluable for accessing Italy’s 20th-century commercial history.
Try out this model: Italian - 20th Century Minutes of Mediobanca's Board of Directors & Exec. Committee
Transkribus can also transcribe historical printed documents, such as this 16th-century book from publisher Giordano Ziletti. © Boston Public Library
3. Transkribus Print M1
The Transkribus Print M1 general model is designed for transcribing printed texts in Italian and other languages, from the early modern period to the present day. Although its main focus is on print rather than handwriting, the model can also be used to decipher the distinct typefaces used during the Baroque period.
This model is ideal for projects involving printed books, pamphlets, and official documents from early modern Italy. Whether you are studying philosophical treatises or commercial records, Transkribus Print M1 provides an excellent starting point for tackling Italy’s print culture.
Try out this model: Transkribus Print M1
Administrative records, such as this one from 1684, can be almost impossible to decipher by hand. © The Johns Hopkins University Sheridan Libraries
4. Italian Administrative Hands, 1550-1700
The Italian Administrative Hands, 1550-1700 model has been specifically developed to transcribe early modern Italian administrative texts. It was trained on a variety of scripts used in legal and bureaucratic contexts during this period. This makes it highly effective for tackling parish records, tax registers, and official correspondence.
This model is particularly useful for researchers studying the governance and administration of Baroque Italy. Its ability to decipher Italian hands from local or regional archives ensures it performs well with manuscripts that often present unique challenges.
Try out this model: Italian Administrative Hands, 1550-1700
Additional resources for transcribing historical documents with Transkribus
If you’re new to Transkribus, there are plenty of resources to help you get started with transcribing your historical documents.
The Beginner's Guide in our Help Center provides an excellent overview of the transcription process in Transkribus, making it a great place to begin. For a more in-depth look at automatic text recognition, you can read the section on automatic text recognition using public AI models, such as the ones described in this post.
Additionally, the Transkribus YouTube channel offers a wealth of tutorial videos, demonstrating the platform’s many features step by step.
Conclusion
These four AI models demonstrate how technology can transform the transcription of old Italian texts. From printed Renaissance books to corporate minutes, the versatility of these tools ensures that researchers can tackle a wide range of materials with confidence and precision.
By using these models, archivists and historians can focus more on analysing the content and less on deciphering the scripts. Whether you’re uncovering Italy’s medieval administrative systems or exploring 20th-century corporate records, these tools open up new possibilities for understanding and preserving Italy’s rich historical heritage.
