Metadata guidelines for accession records
Introduction
- Accession record metadata guidelines are derived from the Canadian Archival Accession Information Standard (May 2019 Final 1.0) and the tool tips provided in ArchivesSpace.
- Guidelines are organized in accordance with the accession record data entry form provided in ArchivesSpace, not the draft CAAIS standard.
Basic information area
| Information element | Usage | Guidelines | CAAIS element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Title | Required | Supply an accession title that consists of the creator’s name(s) and the type of material. The accession title may be an interim title and may be subject to revision during processing. | 1.3 Accession title |
| Identifier | Required | Assign a unique accession identifier using a standardized system for generating numeric or alphanumeric codes. | 1.2 Accession identifier |
| Accession date | Required | Record the date the accessioning took place. Add event statements to record additional date information. | 5.1 Event statement |
| Content description | Required | Record a summary that includes: functions and activities that resulted in the material’s generation, dates, the geographic area to which the material pertains, subject matter, arrangement, classification, and documentary forms. This is recorded as a free text statement. | 3.3 Scope and content |
| Condition description | Optional | Provide a description of the physical condition of the contents of the accession, including any special handling requirements. Use preservation statements to provide information about material in the accession that is known to be at-risk of becoming inaccessible due to physical damage or degradation; that requires special equipment or technology to access its content; or that will require specific supplies or expertise to preserve. | 4.3 Material assessment statement |
| Disposition | Optional | Describe how the contents of the accession have been assigned to different fonds or collections. | 1.4 Archival Unit |
| Inventory | Optional | ||
| Provenance | Optional | Provide provenance information about the accession, such as custodial history, detailed acquisition information, etc. | |
| Retention rule | Do not use | Retention rules are provided in the file classifications. | |
| General note | Optional | ||
| Acquisition type | Required | 1.5 Acquisition method | |
| Resource type | Required | ||
| Restrictions apply? | |||
| Publish? | Do not use | Do not use | |
| Access restrictions? | Required | Check the box if there are any access restrictions for the contents of the accession. | |
| Access restrictions note | Required | If there are restrictions provide an explanatory note. | |
| Use restrictions? | Required | Check the box if there are any use restrictions for the contents of the accession. | |
| Use restrictions note | Required | If there are restrictions provide an explanatory note. |
Dates area
Accession records can include multiple date notes. The following guidelines apply to each date note.
| Information element | Usage | Guidelines | CAAIS element | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Label | Required | Each accession record must contain a "creation" note with "bulk dates" of creation information in the expression field. Begin date and end date information should be provided whenever possible. Select other date labels as necessary. | 3.1 Date of material | |
| Expression | Required | See RAD 1.4B5 for guidance on expressing probable and uncertain dates. | 3.1 Date of material | |
| Type | Required | Select the type of date expression:
Each accession record must contain a "creation" note with "bulk dates" of creation information in the expression field. | 3.1 Date of material | |
| Begin | Mandatory (certain dates) | 3.1 Date of material | ||
| End | Mandatory (certain dates) | 3.1 Date of material | ||
| Certainty | If a probable or uncertain date is expressed in accordance with RAD 1.4B5, select the appropriate level of certainty from the drop-down menu:
| 3.1 Date of material | ||
| Era | Do not use | Do not use | ||
| Calendar | Do not use | Do not use | ||
Extents area
Accession records can include multiple extent notes. The following guidelines apply to each extent note.
| Information element | Usage | Guidelines | CAAIS element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portion | Required | ||
| Number | Required | ||
| Type | Required | ||
| Container summary | |||
| Physical details | Conditionally required | ||
| Dimensions |
Agent links area
| Information element | Usage | Guidelines | CAAIS element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Role | Required | ||
| Relator | |||
| Agents | Required |
Related resources area
| Information element | Usage | Guidelines | CAAIS element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Resources | Do not use | Do not use | 1.5 Archival unit |
Related accessions area
| Information element | Usage | Guidelines | CAAIS element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Relationship type | Do not use | Select "Part of" relationship if:
Select "Sibling" relationship if the accession is bound with other accessions that together form part of another accession | N/A |
| This accession | Do not use | If Relationship type is "Part of," the "This accession" field automatically includes two options:
If Relationship type is "Sibling," the "This accession" field automatically changes to "Is Sibling of" | N/A |
| Accession | Do not use | Type to search available records | N/A |
| Relator type | Do not use | If Relationship type is "Part of," the relator type automatically changes to "Part" relationship If Relationship type is "Sibling," the relator type automatically changes to "Bound With" relationship | N/A |
Subjects area
| Information element | Usage | Guidelines | CAAIS element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subjects | Do not use | Do not use | N/A |
External documents area
| Information element | Usage | Guidelines | CAAIS element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Title | Not yet determined | Provide a reference for documentation related to the material in the accession, when applicable. This reference may specify a physical location for this documentation or it may consist of a link to an electronic file. Record the title of the associated documentation. This may be assigned by the originator of the documentation or by the repository. | 4.5 Associated documentation |
| Location | Not yet determined | Record the location of the file, ideally a resolvable URI. | 4.5 Associated documentation |
| Publish? | Do not use | Do not use. If this box is checked, the reference to the external document is published to public (patron) interfaces. | 4.5 Associated documentation |
Rights statement area
| Information element | Usage | Guidelines | CAAIS element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rights Type | 4.2.1 Rights Type |
Instances area
| Information element | Usage | Guidelines | CAAIS element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type | |||
| Top container | Type to search available records... | N/A | |
| Child type | Not yet determined | N/A | |
| Child indicator | Not yet determined | N/A | |
| Grandchild type | Not yet determined | N/A | |
| Grandchild indicator | Not yet determined | N/A |
New "Top Containers" must be created for each accession record
| Information element | Usage | Guidelines | CAAIS element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Container profile | |||
| Container type | |||
| Indicator | |||
| Barcode | Do not use | Do not use | N/A |
| ILS Holding ID | Do not use | Do not use | N/A |
| ILS Item ID | Do not use | Do not use | N/A |
| Exported to ILS? | Do not use | Do not use | N/A |
| Locations | |||
| Status | |||
| Start date | |||
| End date | |||
| Note | |||
| Location | |||
Deaccessions area
| Information element | Usage | Guidelines | CAAIS element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portion | |||
| Description | |||
| Reason | |||
| Disposition | |||
| Notification given? | |||
| Deaccession date | |||
| Deaccession date label | |||
| Deaccession date expression | |||
| Deaccession date type | |||
| Deaccession date certainty | |||
| Deaccession date era | |||
| Deaccession date calendar | |||
| Deaccession extents | |||
| Portion | |||
| Number | |||
| Type | |||
| Container summary | |||
| Physical detailsq | |||
| Dimensions | |||
Collection management area
| Information element | Usage | Guidelines | CAAIS element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Processing priority | Do not use | Do not use | |
| Rights determined? | Do not use | Do not use | |
| Processing plan | Do not use | Do not use | |
| Processors | Do not use | Do not use | |
| Processing hrs/unit estimate | Do not use | Do not use | |
| Processing total extent | Do not use | Do not use | |
| Extent type | Do not use | Do not use | |
| Total processing hours | Do not use | Do not use | |
| Funding source | Do not use | Do not use | |
| Processing status | Do not use | Do not use |
Classifications area
| Information element | Usage | Guidelines | CAAIS element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Classifications | Required for University Records Do not use for private donations | Select the appropriate DalClass classification(s) from the drop-down list. | 1.6 Disposition Authority |
User defined fields area
Note: the User defined fields include information about monetary appraisals and legacy identifiers (e.g., old accession numbers, ULM identifiers).
| Information element | Usage | Guidelines | CAAIS element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boolean 2 | Conditionally required | ||
| Date 1 | Conditionally required | If the accession received a monetary appraisal, record the date of the monetary appraisal report. | |
| String 1 | Conditionally required | If the accession received a monetary appraisal, record the name of the monetary appraiser. | |
| String 2 | Conditionally required | If the accession received a monetary appraisal, record the value of the monetary appraisal. | |
| Accessioned by (String 3) | Required | Record the name of the Archives staff member responsible for the creation or revision of the accession record. | 7.3.3. Action agent |
| Text 1 | Do not use | Element includes legacy accession numbers. Data was transcribed from paper accession records into the Archivists' Toolkit database in 2011 and then migrated into ArchivesSpace in 2018. | 1.3 Other identifier |
| Text 2 | Do not use | Element includes legacy identifiers originally published in union list of manuscripts in Canadian repositories (ULM). Data was transcribed from paper accession records into the Archivists' Toolkit database in 2011 and then migrated into ArchivesSpace in 2018. | 1.3 Other identifier |
| Text 3 | Optional | Record monetary appraisal notes, as necessary. | 4.4.3 Appraisal statement note |