Linked Open Data & Ontology Trends in the Cultural Heritage Sector: Current Projects, Future Directions, and the Case for Provenance

This study contributes to the discussion of open access to arts and humanities data. Specifically, I explore the semantic knowledge graph technology that powers linked open data projects for cultural heritage institutions by analyzing the affordances of these systems, while looking ahead to an increasingly networked future. One area identified for the future expansion of linked open data is provenance research, to not only uplift underrepresented histories, but also aid museums in their social responsibility and ethical goals. To illustrate this, the case of the Benin Bronzes is discussed, with the provenance events connected to one object modeled with the Linked Art Profile of the CIDOC CRM ontology.