Preserving Priceless Digital Heritage

In a remote corner of Svalbard, amidst the icy silence of the Arctic, lies a modern marvel that safeguards the treasures of our digital world. The Arctic World Archive (AWA), nestled deep within the permafrost, is the guardian of priceless data and a testament to human achievement.

One of our most remarkable roles is being the custodian of literature that has shaped our world. The works of renowned authors, poets, and playwrights are stored here, ensuring that future generations can continue to be inspired by their words.

Chinese calligraphy font for love, a gift to the future by Xiaomi and MediaStorm, capturing today's visions of the future.

Multiple Institutions

A Gift to the Future

Preserving humanity's legacy for millennia: The 'A Gift to the Future' project by MediaStorm and Xiaomi captures our world's essence.

A Gift to the Future
Big Data Studies Lab

University of Hong Kong

Big Data Studies Lab

Since 2019, the Big Data Studies Lab (BDS) has pursued experimental research that rethinks the role of the humanities in...

University of Hong Kong
Court orders, decisions, and judgements

Judicial Branch of the State of Mexico

Court orders, decisions, and judgements

Judicial Branch of the State of Mexico has been concerned with safeguarding and preserving the memory of those decisions emanating...

Judicial Branch of the State of Mexico
Engraving work of

Mediha Didem Türemen

Engraving work of "Homage to Albrecht Dürer"

Mediha Didem Türemen is a Turkish producer, contemporary artist, photographer, actress and filmmaker based in Istanbul. She has two master’s...

Mediha Didem Türemen
ESA's Collection of Earth Observation

European Space Agency (ESA)

ESA's Collection of Earth Observation

The European Space Agency (ESA) is a joint organization across 22 countries focusing on the exploration of earth as the...

European Space Agency (ESA)
Research Vessel Belgica

Christian Clauwers

Research Vessel Belgica

Christian Clauwers is a Belgian photographer, explorer, public speaker and author. His work covers the world's oceans and the polar regions whilst...

Christian Clauwers
Sea Walls & Mangrove Trees in the Pacific Region

Christian Clauwers

Sea Walls & Mangrove Trees in the Pacific Region

Christian Clauwers is a Belgian photographer, explorer, public speaker and author. His work covers the world's oceans and the polar regions whilst...

Christian Clauwers
The Louisiana Music Halls Project

Utah Valley University

The Louisiana Music Halls Project

The Louisiana Music Halls Project is a collaboration with the NCPTT, the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, and Utah Valley...

Utah Valley University
The Mizter Rad Show

Mizter Rad

The Mizter Rad Show

The Mizter Rad Show is a podcast discussing the future of humanity with the most interesting global personalities. On June 29,...

Mizter Rad
30 years of Brazilian life stories

Brazilian Museum of the Person

30 years of Brazilian life stories

The Museum of the Person, a virtual and collaborative museum dedicated to the recording, preservation and dissemination of life stories,...

Brazilian Museum of the Person
I Call it Art

National Museum of Norway

I Call it Art

The National Museum of Norway is the largest art museum in Scandinavia, and holds, conserves, exhibits and promotes public knowledge...

National Museum of Norway
Microsoft Office and Adobe Suite

Yale University Library

Microsoft Office and Adobe Suite

The Yale University Library’s EaaSI (Emulation as a Service Infrastructure) program made its first contribution to AWA. The goal of...

Yale University Library
NFT's and digital Svalbard money

Sparebank 1

NFT's and digital Svalbard money

The Norwegian bank Sparebank1 and the cryptocurrency exchange service provider Kaupang Krypto have, in collaboration, introduced a collection of non-fungible...

Sparebank 1
Norwegian Health Archive

Norwegian Health Archive

Norwegian Health Archive

The Norwegian Health Archive is a national registry for trustworthy health data for research and good health. The first deposit...

Norwegian Health Archive
Oral history from Kosovo

Embassy of Kosovo in Norway

Oral history from Kosovo

Established in 2012, the Oral History Initiative is a Kosovo-based collective of researchers from different generations and nationalities. The Initiative...

Embassy of Kosovo in Norway
Spanish industrial history and heritage

Repsol

Spanish industrial history and heritage

Repsol is a Spanish multinational energy and petrochemical company performing worldwide upstream and downstream activities, formed by around 24000 employees...

Repsol
Svalbard! Money!

Sparebank 1

Svalbard! Money!

In this insightful book Søberg talks about what money is and how it shifts with time and technology. From the...

Sparebank 1
Swiss cathedral - Bern Minster

Berner Minster Foundation

Swiss cathedral - Bern Minster

The Bern Minster is a Swiss reformed cathedral, in the old city of Bern, Switzerland. Built in the Gothic style,...

Berner Minster Foundation
The French artist Serge Bassenko

Eléonore Mongiat

The French artist Serge Bassenko

Serge Bassenko (1927-2013) was a French artist, thinker and writer always in search of the soul of the human world....

Eléonore Mongiat
The GitHub Tech Tree

GitHub

The GitHub Tech Tree

In their third deposit, GitHub preserved what they refer to as the Tech Tree, a selection of works intended to...

GitHub
Top Dog Studios - Digital Art and NFT's

Top Dog Studios

Top Dog Studios - Digital Art and NFT's

Top Dog Studios is the innovative and creative studio behind the world-famous Top Dog Beach Club NFT (non-fungible tokens) collection,...

Top Dog Studios
UNESCO World Heritage - Bhimbetka

Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)

UNESCO World Heritage - Bhimbetka

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency, under the Ministry of Culture, that is responsible for...

Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)
UNESCO World Heritage - Dholavira

Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)

UNESCO World Heritage - Dholavira

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency, under the Ministry of Culture, that is responsible for...

Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)
UNESCO World Heritage - Taj Mahal

Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)

UNESCO World Heritage - Taj Mahal

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency, under the Ministry of Culture, that is responsible for...

Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)
A feature film from Svalbard

Hans Petter Moland

A feature film from Svalbard

The renowned Norwegian Director, Hans Petter Moland has chosen to deposit a classic Norwegian film Zero Kelvin (Kjærlighetens Kjøtere), filmed...

Hans Petter Moland
Art from South-East Asia

Artemis Art Gallery

Art from South-East Asia

Representing the first Malaysian contribution, this deposit celebrates South-East Asian's vibrant art culture as seen through the eyes of emerging...

Artemis Art Gallery
Digital art

Guttormsgaards Archive

Digital art

Led by art historian Ellef Prestsæter, and working with US artist Sean Snyder, Guttormsgaards Arkiv is depositing a special digital...

Guttormsgaards Archive
Durga Saptashati Manuscripts

Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts (IGNCA)

Durga Saptashati Manuscripts

Facilitated by Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts (IGNCA) and the Ministry of Culture in India, the Durga Saptashati Manuscripts...

Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts (IGNCA)
Global photographic collection

Progettali

Global photographic collection

A unique historic photographic collection is being deposited by Progettali, a private photographic archive. The collection features photos from Europe...

Progettali
Hungarian cultural heritage

National Library of Hungary

Hungarian cultural heritage

Representing the first Hungarian deposit, The National Library of Hungary deposited a selection of manuscripts representing different eras, along with...

National Library of Hungary
Icelandic and Nordic manuscripts

The Saga Heritage Foundation

Icelandic and Nordic manuscripts

The Saga Heritage Foundation has chosen to deposit the Flateyjarbok from 1387, one of the most important Icelandic and Nordic...

The Saga Heritage Foundation
National symbols of Kazakhstan

Embassy of Kazakhstan in Norway

National symbols of Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan's Ambassador to Norway, Yerkin Akhinzhanov, followed by a Kazakh delegation, made a deposit containing digitised versions of the national...

Embassy of Kazakhstan in Norway
Nobel Prize winner

Wislawa Szymborska Foundation

Nobel Prize winner

AWA welcomes Nobel Prize winner Wislawa Szymborska. The Arctic World Archive is proud to have received the works of Nobel...

Wislawa Szymborska Foundation
Norewegian Cannes Film Festival winner

Oslo Pictures

Norewegian Cannes Film Festival winner

The Norwegian film producer Oslo Pictures is depositing the new movie "Verdens verste menneske". English title is "The Worst Person...

Oslo Pictures
Norway in WWII

Norwegian Armed Forces Museum

Norway in WWII

The Norwegian Armed Forces Museum made its second deposit with a collection of photographs from Luftfartsmuseet, Forsvarsmuseet and Hjemmefrontsmuseet. These...

Norwegian Armed Forces Museum
Norwegian industry history

Tronrud Engineering

Norwegian industry history

Tronrud Engineering, one of the great stories of Norwegian industrial development, is depositing its core corporate history, centred around a...

Tronrud Engineering
Saskatchewan Doukhobor cultural heritage

Spirit Wrestler Productions

Saskatchewan Doukhobor cultural heritage

The Doukhobours or Dukhobors (Spirit-Warriors/Wrestlers) are a Spiritual Christian ethnoreligious group of Russian origin, The Doukhobor community, among the first...

Spirit Wrestler Productions
The fossil Britney

Natural History Museum of Norway

The fossil Britney

Making its second AWA deposit, the Natural History Museum chose to preserve a 'local' - the data from Ophthalmothule Cryostea,...

Natural History Museum of Norway
UNESCO World Heritage - Brihadishvara Temple

Sapio Analytics

UNESCO World Heritage - Brihadishvara Temple

After the initiation of preservation of paintings on the UNESCO world heritage site, Ajanta Caves, more restored artworks from ancient...

Sapio Analytics
All of GitHub's active public repositories

GitHub

All of GitHub's active public repositories

In their second deposit, GitHub preserved a snapshot of all active public repositories on its platform into AWA in July...

GitHub
Bibliotheca Manuscripts Schoeyana

Martin Schøyen Foundation

Bibliotheca Manuscripts Schoeyana

The Schøyen Collection was started around 1920 by Engineer M.O. Schøyen (1896-1962), father of Martin Schøyen, who collected some 1000...

Martin Schøyen Foundation
Labour history

Finnish Labor Archive

Labour history

The Finnish Labour Archive, Työväen Arkisto, is Finland’s oldest social movement archive that preserves and makes available the records of...

Finnish Labor Archive
Life in Norway during WWII

Norwegian Armed Forces Museum

Life in Norway during WWII

The Norwegian Armed Forces Museum deposited a significant part of its digitised photo collection ncluding the complete collection from The...

Norwegian Armed Forces Museum
Nobel Prize winner

Olga Tokarczuk Foundation

Nobel Prize winner

Olga Tokarczuk Foundation and Literary Publishing (virtually) deposited the complete literary works of Olga Tokarczuk, a Nobel Prize Laureate, marking...

Olga Tokarczuk Foundation
Norwegian female photographers

National Museum of Norway

Norwegian female photographers

The National Museum of Norway made its third deposit in a row deposit, with important photographic collections from three female...

National Museum of Norway
Norwegian sports history

Mjøndalen Sports Association

Norwegian sports history

Mjøndalen Sports Association, Norway, deposited its 110-year history, featuring celebrated triumphs, rivalries, videos, photos and stories that have been treasured...

Mjøndalen Sports Association
Supporters of the Child Convention

UNICEF

Supporters of the Child Convention

UNICEF made their second deposit, featuring a petition of thousands of signatures in support of their previous deposit, of the...

UNICEF
Swedens complete database of art

Moderna Museet

Swedens complete database of art

Moderna Museet, Sweden, deposited a copy of its entire art database of 140,000 pieces, along with the descriptions and images....

Moderna Museet
UNESCO World Heritage - Ajanta Caves

Sapio Analytics

UNESCO World Heritage - Ajanta Caves

Sapio Analytics deposited high resolution images of the Ajanta Caves in India, the first AWA deposit of a UNESCO world...

Sapio Analytics
Ancient manuscripts from the Vatican

Vatican Library

Ancient manuscripts from the Vatican

The Vatican Library built on its previous deposit with more ancient manuscripts, making it the Archive’s largest contributor. The 60...

Vatican Library
Nat Friedman looking out of a glass bubble on Svalbard.

GitHub

Arctic Code Vault

Arctic Code Vault: Safeguarding Open Source Code for the Future, in AWA!

Arctic Code Vault
Art from South Korea

Yongseok Oh

Art from South Korea

A Korean Artist, Yongseok Oh, is now storing an art project focussed on time, in the Arctic World Archive. Through...

Yongseok Oh
Beit Lehi - the lost city of ancient Israel

Utah Valley University

Beit Lehi - the lost city of ancient Israel

Many of the historical milestones that happened anciently in the land of Israel are reflected by the settlement history of...

Utah Valley University
Brazilian life stories

Brazilian Museum of the Person

Brazilian life stories

The Museum of the Person, a virtual and collaborative museum dedicated to the recording, preservation and dissemination of life stories....

Brazilian Museum of the Person
Collections from National Archive of Namibia

Utah Valley University

Collections from National Archive of Namibia

Utah Valley University (UVU) is a public university in Orem, Utha that is engaged in digital preservation education and activities....

Utah Valley University
Egyptian manuscripts

University of Pisa

Egyptian manuscripts

Pisa University deposited manuscripts including those of the Egyptologist Ippolito Rosellini, which still constitute an indispensable tool for scholars of...

University of Pisa
ESA's satellite data

European Space Agency (ESA)

ESA's satellite data

The European Space Agency (ESA) deposited some sample data acquired by its first Earth Remote Sensing (ERS) satellite launched in...

European Space Agency (ESA)
First audio recordings on Edison cylinders

Utah Valley University

First audio recordings on Edison cylinders

Utah Valley University (UVU) is a public university in Orem, Utah, that is engaged in digital preservation education and activities....

Utah Valley University
Higgs boson scientific breakthrough

CERN

Higgs boson scientific breakthrough

The landmark discovery of the Higgs boson at the Large Hadron Collider at the CERN in 2012, and the progress...

CERN
Ida - the missing link

Natural History Museum of Norway

Ida - the missing link

The National History Museum of Norway deposited the original digital files and the x-ray images of the worldrenowned Ida fossil...

Natural History Museum of Norway
Italian classical cinema

Variety Distribution

Italian classical cinema

Variety Communication, a film distributor with one of the largest Italian heritage film collections, deposited the iconic Ladri di Biciclette...

Variety Distribution
Music for the Jilted Generation

The Prodigy

Music for the Jilted Generation

The Prodigy are an English electronic dance music band formed in Braintree, Essex, in 1990 by producer, keyboard player and...

The Prodigy
Namibian Women's Issues

Utah Valley University

Namibian Women's Issues

Utah Valley University (UVU) is a public university in Orem, that is engaged in digital preservation education and activities. UVU...

Utah Valley University
Norwegian folk tales

Telia/Hidden

Norwegian folk tales

Telia, in collaboration with a Norwegian start-up, Hidden, deposited a collection of Norwegian folk tales that capture the essence of...

Telia/Hidden
Oscar winning Italian feature film Mediterraneo

Mediaset Infinity

Oscar winning Italian feature film Mediterraneo

Infinity, a service of MediaSet deposited one of the most iconic italian movies: “Mediterraneo” - directed by Gabriele Salvatores. The...

Mediaset Infinity
Plenary acts from Barcelona

Barcelona Provincial Council

Plenary acts from Barcelona

The Provincial Diputación of Barcelona is the local body charged with the government and administration of the province of Barcelona....

Barcelona Provincial Council
Religious heritage from Europe

Future of Religious Heritage

Religious heritage from Europe

Future for Religious Heritage (FRH) is committed to reaching the goal of engaging Europeans from every community in the heritage...

Future of Religious Heritage
Sami Culture

National Museum of Norway

Sami Culture

The National Museum of Norway made a deposist with selected artworks celebrating Sami culture. ...

National Museum of Norway
Spanish political memories

Felipe Gónzalez Foundation

Spanish political memories

Fundación Felipe Gónzalez deposited important political memories, including transcripts of secret meetings, photographs, letters and handwritten notes by the sitting...

Felipe Gónzalez Foundation
Spike Jones - American musician

Utah Valley University

Spike Jones - American musician

Lindley Armstrong "Spike" Jones was an American musician and bandleader specializing in spoof arrangements of popular songs and classical music....

Utah Valley University
Svalbard photos

Svalbard Museum

Svalbard photos

The Svalbard Museum is a museum in Longyearbyen, the largest town in the Svalbard archipelago. The museum displays artifacts from...

Svalbard Museum
Thai industrial history

SCG

Thai industrial history

SGC Thailand, a leading business conglomerate has digitally preserved its history in the Arctic World Archive. This history, covering the...

SCG
The Guggenheim Bilbao Museum building.

Guggenheim Bilbao

Guggenheim Bilbao Architecture

From paper to permafrost: Guggenheim Bilbao's remarkable quest for design preservation. Explore the Arctic vault that guards their legacy.

Guggenheim Bilbao Architecture
The Convention on the Rights of the Child

UNICEF

The Convention on the Rights of the Child

UNICEF, originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an...

UNICEF
The Gutenberg Bible

Goethe University Frankfurt

The Gutenberg Bible

Goethe University is a university located in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It was founded in 1914 as a citizens' university,...

Goethe University Frankfurt
The life of Henrik Ibsen

National Museum of Norway

The life of Henrik Ibsen

Henrik Johan Ibsen (1828 - 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism...

National Museum of Norway
The Night Watch made immortal

Rjksmuseum

The Night Watch made immortal

The Rijksmuseum is the national museum of the Netherlands dedicated to Dutch arts and history and is located in Amsterdam....

Rjksmuseum
The Sound Bench - unique Swedish sound works

Audiorama

The Sound Bench - unique Swedish sound works

Audiorama initiates, plan and execute projects focusing on contemporary sound art, earplays and electroacoustic music. They commission, produce and present...

Audiorama
Travel history preserved

Bubo Travel

Travel history preserved

The Slovakian travel agency Bubo Travel has deposited their 25 year history from travels around the world. Being the biggest...

Bubo Travel
Winter Night in the Mountains

National Museum of Norway

Winter Night in the Mountains

The National Museum of Norway made their second deposit to the Archive, featuring a diverse collection of the more valuable...

National Museum of Norway
Art from Brazil

National Museum Brasilia

Art from Brazil

The National Museum of the Republic has deposit digitized works of art that represent the collection of well-regarded Brazilian painters...

National Museum Brasilia
Brazilian fotball at its best

Brazilian Football Confederation

Brazilian fotball at its best

The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) is the governing body of football in Brazil. Now they have made sure that the...

Brazilian Football Confederation
Brazilian music

Gilberto Gil

Brazilian music

Gilberto Gil is a Brazilian singer-songwriter and politician, known for both his musical innovation and political activism. From 2003 to...

Gilberto Gil
Fantastico - frozen TV

TV Globo

Fantastico - frozen TV

Brazilian TV Globo deposited the first episode of the year 2000 of the TV Show "Fantastico". Fantastico is a TV...

TV Globo
Finnish art

Minna Alaluusua

Finnish art

The Finnish contemporary artist and Master of Arts preserved valuable photographs (some model and artwork photos) in digital and visual...

Minna Alaluusua
Galileo

Pro Sieben Galileo

Galileo "on ice"

Galileo is a German television program series produced and broadcast on ProSieben television network. Their first show was broadcasted in...

Pro Sieben Galileo
Historical films from Drammen

Drammen Municipality Archives

Historical films from Drammen

Drammen city archive was established on 1 January 2007 and is a municipal archive institution for Drammen. The main task...

Drammen Municipality Archives
Holy scriptures of Hinduism

Ravish Mehra and family

Holy scriptures of Hinduism

The Bhagavad Gita, often referred to as the Gita, is a 700-verse Hindu scripture that is part of the epic...

Ravish Mehra and family
Italian masterpiece - The Divine Comedy

Vatican Library

Italian masterpiece - The Divine Comedy

The "Divine Comedy" (La Divina Commedia) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun c. 1308 and completed in...

Vatican Library
Italian opera

Renata Tebaldi Foundation

Italian opera

Renata Tebaldi Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI was an Italian lirico-spinto soprano popular in the post-war period, and especially prominent...

Renata Tebaldi Foundation
Oldest photos

Fratelli Alinari

Oldest photos

Fratelli Alinari was one of the world's oldest photographic firms, founded in Florence, Italy in 1852. Its archives contained 5.5...

Fratelli Alinari
The fall of the Berlin Wall

Der Spiegel

The fall of the Berlin Wall

Der Spiegel is a German weekly news magazine. It was founded in 1947 by John Seymour Chaloner, a British army...

Der Spiegel
The Scream

National Museum of Norway

The Scream

The National Museum in Oslo exhibits Norway's largest collection of art, architecture and design. The museum holds a significan collection...

National Museum of Norway
Brazil's Constitution

National Archives of Brazil

Brazil's Constitution

The National Archive of Brazil deposited historical documents such as the first Constitution of the Monarchy from 1824, the first...

National Archives of Brazil
County municipality records

KDRS

County municipality records

KDRS is the Norwegian municipal archive institutions' digital resource centre and is owned by the members, who are municipal and...

KDRS
Independence Act of the Mexican Empire

National Archive of Mexico

Independence Act of the Mexican Empire

The National Archive of Mexico deposited some of their most valuable assets; the Constitution of the Mexican Federation, the Independence...

National Archive of Mexico

As you delve deeper into the heart of AWA, you realize that this archive is more than just a storage facility; it's a time capsule that encapsulates the essence of human creativity and knowledge.

Want to join a deposit on Svalbard?

To visit Svalbard is on many people's bucket list, and we recommend everyone who stores their precious memories in AWA to participate in a deposit ceremony.