Craftpedia:About
Craftpedia is a global, multilingual digital encyclopedia dedicated to documenting the world’s traditional crafts and artisanal techniques. It brings together knowledge from museums, scholars, artisans, and cultural communities to preserve and present humanity’s craft heritage in a clear, structured, and accessible way.
What Is Craftpedia?
[edit]Craftpedia is:
- an academic-style reference work,
- a digital museum of traditional crafts,
- a multilingual cultural heritage project,
- a community-supported platform of translators, editors, and researchers.
It is non-commercial, neutral, and committed to accuracy, cultural respect, and long-term preservation.
What Craftpedia Covers
[edit]Craftpedia documents:
- traditional craft techniques (ceramics, textiles, metalwork, lacquer, woodcraft, and more);
- tools, materials, and processes used by artisans;
- regional variations and local schools of craftsmanship;
- historical periods and cultural contexts;
- notable workshops, traditions, and artisans where historically relevant;
- rituals and cultural practices connected to craft production.
Craftpedia aims to represent every culture with equal respect, from major historical traditions to small, endangered ones.
How Craftpedia Is Structured
[edit]Craftpedia is organized through:
- material-based craft domains (e.g., ceramics, textiles, metalwork);
- geographic categories (regions, prefectures, provinces);
- historical periods;
- object types and functional categories;
- technique-based subcategories.
Each article follows a standardized academic structure to ensure clarity and consistency across thousands of entries.
Multilingual Mission
[edit]Craftpedia is designed from the ground up to be multilingual.
Portals exist (or will exist) at top-level domains such as:
- craftpedia.eu
- craftpedia.asia
- craftpedia.africa
- craftpedia.us
- craftpedia.au (future)
- craftpedia.nz (future)
Language versions are translated using a strict workflow involving translators, proofreaders, and fact-checkers.
Machine translation is used only as a helper, never as final content.
Who Contributes to Craftpedia?
[edit]Craftpedia is maintained by:
- translators,
- proofreaders,
- fact-checkers,
- editors,
- cultural experts,
- artisans,
- researchers,
- volunteers from around the world.
Everyone follows strict editorial guidelines to ensure accuracy and neutrality.
What Makes Craftpedia Unique
[edit]Craftpedia is unique because it:
- provides deep, structured, academically oriented craft documentation;
- is organized like a digital museum rather than a general encyclopedia;
- focuses exclusively on traditional craft heritage;
- uses a multilingual, category-driven matrix structure;
- respects cultural sensitivity and historical authenticity;
- does not promote, advertise, or commercialize crafts.
No Commercial Influence
[edit]Craftpedia does not:
- sell products,
- advertise,
- accept promotional content,
- collaborate with commercial craft sellers.
All content is independent and academically grounded.
Cultural Respect and Responsibility
[edit]Craftpedia is committed to:
- culturally sensitive documentation,
- avoiding misuse of imagery,
- respecting community restrictions on sacred objects,
- ensuring accurate terminology and respectful representation.
Where images are not appropriate or available, articles remain text-only.
How to Contribute
[edit]Anyone may contribute by:
- translating articles,
- proofreading text,
- fact-checking historical statements,
- expanding categories and terminology,
- suggesting missing crafts or traditions,
- improving clarity and structure.
Volunteers follow the Volunteer Handbook and other editorial guides.
Long-Term Goal
[edit]Craftpedia’s long-term goal is to create the most comprehensive, accessible, and culturally respectful digital repository of world crafts, supporting scholars, educators, museums, and communities for generations to come.
Version History
[edit]- 1.0 – Initial release (English)