The Ephemeriad Project is open to contributions of ephemera images.
If you have any query about what to contribute or want to discuss your proposed contribution, feel free to shoot us an email at [email protected]
We understand that you may have multiple queries about the project and contribution policies. We have created a set of FAQs below to answer all your queries. If we have missed anything, do not hesitate to email us.
While sending contributions, kindly include the phrase "Contribution - Ephemeriad" in the subject line of the email. The email address for contributions remains the same as above.
FAQs
What is "The Ephemeriad Project" or "Ephemeriad"?
Ephemeriad is an online archive of ephemera self-funded and maintained by Subhradeep Chatterjee. The website aims to showcase ephemera uploaded by the creator as well as contributors. The website's mission is to ensure an inclusive approach to archival processes and uses extensive textual descriptions of visual content to make it accessible to the visually disabled community.
What is the scope of the archive and how do I know if my contribution will be a good fit?
The Phase I of the archive focuses on ephemera and is open to contributions. For the definition of ephemera, kindly refer to the About Us page. We are looking for any cultural object of printed matter that was meant to be used for a short time and not be stored. This can include old tickets, matchbox labels, tobacco labels, special editions of newspapers, etc. While the definition is broad and can include a wide variety of things, we are interested primarily in such objects which have historical significance, qualifies to be a unique instance of that object type and is quirky. Existing ephemera in our collection will provide an idea about what we archive. Having said that, feel free to describe the ephemera in your query email and we can discuss it.
Who will own the image rights of my contributed ephemera?
Ephemeriad's aim is to function as an online archive and showcase ephemeral objects of interest. The site and its owner will not claim ownership rights of the objects or the object images in any case. While the images uploaded from the collection of the site creator are owned by him, the contributions remain owned by the individual contributors with full credits to them.
By uploading an ephemera image, the contributor certifies that the said ephemera is owned by them and has been contributed in an "as-is" condition with full consent of the owner. The image rights will remain with them but they can choose to make their image available for public use using Creative Commons licences. Ephemeriad will not accept contributions of images acquired without proper permission of the owners or those collection from social media forwards/shares.
By contributing to the archive, the contributor grants The Ephemeriad Project the right to host the said image in its supplied iteration (subject to watermarking as discussed between the contributor and the project owner) on the website and share the post of the same on the project's social media handles/accounts.
Can I choose the mode of showcasing my ephemera image?
Yes, absolutely. While we offer the option of hosting the image on our servers and embedding it on the post, we also understand that one might not be comfortable with hosting images of their prized possessions on a second-party system (and consequently a third-party server). In such a case, one can upload their images on Instagram or Facebook or Twitter and mention the contribution details on the post along with tagging our official social media channels. We can embed the post in our archive post page. While we do not recommend this method as this will interfere with providing image thumbnails on posts, we promise to respect the contributor's wishes.
How do I ensure that my image is not commercialized?
Ephemeriad will function as a not-for-profit project and will host the images for educational and cultural entertainment purposes and NOT monetize the contributed content through ads or by selling data. However, the internet cannot guarantee a safe space for all content and we cannot guarantee against unauthorized use of images. For the benefit of the contributors in ensuring that their images remain secure as practically possible, we offer to watermark the images with the name of the project (i.e. "The Ephemeriad Project"). Contributors can also choose to have them watermarked with their own names. We would be happy to make the necessary arrangements.
Will my contribution be available on the website forever?
Forever is a subjective thing, and at best, a difficult proposition. We cannot feign or promise immortality. However, the site and its owner will regularly keep backups of the contributed data and ensure that website dumps are archived at the WayBackMachine (of the Internet Archive) and Archive.is so that the contributions remain safe and accessible in case the website or its creator/owner ceases to be.
Can I use images from the website in other places?
If you are a researcher and are planning to use the images in academic works, we would be happy to be able to help. In such a case, please provide the contributor and website credits in your citation. We would appreciate it if you also shoot us an email about your content use so that we can keep a record.
The images on this website are NOT meant for commercial usage. The content is also not meant to be stored on any recording media or retrieval system without prior permission of the site creator. In case of content use for any purpose, we encourage query emails regarding the same and we will allow you to re-use the images if the original contributors agree to the same. We would recommend that you route the permissions requests via [email protected]
I have contributed an ephemera image but I wish to remove it. Can that be done?
Yes, definitely. Your data, your choice. But there's a slight issue.
As part of our endeavour of maintaining an archive and making it accessible for as long (and widely) as feasible and possible, we will be archiving posts on the WayBackMachine and similar archiving websites for future reference and record so that contributions remain even if the site or the creator ceases to be. Once ephemera images are contributed, we will archive the page 10 days after posting. We will remove the post should you need us to within that timeframe. After the 10 days period, we will still be able to remove the contributed image from the live version of the website but the archive version may remain. However, we will try to get the archived page removed from the WayBackMachine by emailing them as well, but do note that we cannot guarantee that it will be removed for certain as the final decision rests with them partly.
Kindly shoot us an email at our official contact email in such a case and we will work out the post removal.
(Also, we understand that original creators of ephemeral content may have preferences over their products being archived. Ephemeriad and its creator/founder, Subhradeep Chatterjee, state and reaffirm that the usage of ephemera content on this website does NOT intend to violate copyright policies and that they are showcased only for educational and informative purposes under "fair use" principles. However, should the original creators have any issues with their content being displayed on this website, we encourage them to contact us and we will remove the concerned content right away.)
What about my personal data? Will it be shared publicly?
Nope. Data protection and privacy are at the core of our ethics and no personally identifiable information (PII) will be shared publicly unless indicated/opted for by the uploader. While the contributions will contain the contributor's name (visible publicly), other contact details (including, but not limited to, emails) will not be shared. However, do note that we might have to share relevant information with law enforcement bodies if such a situation arises.
At the same time, while we affirm that The Ephemeriad Project is a solo project self-funded by the creator, we are open to institutional collaborations and might have to share the website content with the collaborating bodies. In such an event, only previously visible public data will be shared. For sharing of any other data, consent will be sought from the contributions as applicable.
Apart from these, the website uses cookies and analytics tools (such as Google Analytics) for counting site visits. Google Analytics may collect data on their own such as visitor demographics which are detailed in their own privacy policies.
