Archival Processing Documentation: Guides & Standards
Technical Standards
XML-Schema for the International Standard Archival Authority Record for Corporate Bodies, Persons and Families
Encoded Archival Description (EAD)
XML-Schema for encoding archival description
Other SAA-Approved Technical Standards
Basic Preservation
Identification & Description Guides for Special Formats
AUDIO VISUAL MATERIAL
SAA Audio and Moving Image Section
Archives of American Art's Guidelines for Processing Collections with Audiovisual Material
International Association of Sound and Audiovisual Archives
ICA guide to Audio-Visual and Photographic Archives Management
NOTATED MUSIC
Guidelines for Archival Description of Notated Music, A Supplement to Describing Archives: A Content Standard
PHOTOGRAPHS
Care and Identification of 19th-Century Photographic Prints, by James M. Reilly
George Eastman Museum Photographic Processes Video Series & Glossary
ICA guide to Audio-Visual and Photographic Archives Management
Library of Congress photographic print processes examples
New York Public Library guide: An Introduction to Photographic Processes
NEDCC guide to 19th and early 20th century photographs
NEDCC short guide to film base photographic materials
PRINTS & PRINTED MATERIAL
Ephemera Society's list of ephemera examples
How to Identify Prints, by Bamber Gascoigne
Tate Modern's online glossary of art terms
TEXTILES
American Institute for Conservation Textile Conservation Wiki
George Washington University Textile Museum
Museum Textile Services resources
Museum Textile Services guide: Identifying and Mitigating Insect Infestations
National Park Service: Causes, Detection, And Prevention Of Mold And Mildew On Textiles
National Park Service: Flag Rolling and Storage
VISUAL RESOURCES (GENERAL)
Cataloging Cultural Objects, chapter 3 (Physical Characteristics)
VARIOUS
The Henry Ford Museum: Care, Storage and Handling of Artifacts
Writing Guides
AP Stylebook, customized for UB (on-campus only)
See also AP Stylebook applications for resource record notes.
Controlled Vocabularies & Content Standards
The official content standard of the U.S. archival community. DACS is implementation-neutral.
Library of Congress Authorities See also LC's linked data service.
The Getty Research Institute vocabularies:
Art & Architecture Thesaurus (AAT)
Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names (TGN)
Cultural Objects Name Authority (CONA)
Union List of Artist Names Online (ULAN)
Archives for Black Lives in Philadelphia (A4BLiP) Anti-Racist Description Resources
A descriptive standard that offers metadata recommendations to address racist, particularly anti-Black, archival description. Maintained by the Archives for Black Lives in Philadelphia (A4BLiP) Anti-Racist Description Working Group and endorsed by the Society of American Archivists.
Homosaurus
An international linked data vocabulary of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) terms intended to function as a companion to broad subject term vocabularies, such as the Library of Congress Subject Headings.
Metadata Best Practices for Trans and Gender-Diverse Resources
Best practices for the description and classification of trans and gender diverse information resources.
Protocols for Native American Archival Materials
A guide for libraries and archives in engaging in culturally responsive care of Native American archival materials and in providing culturally appropriate service to communities. © First Archivist Circle. Endorsed by the Society of American Archivists.
Editorial Guide for Indigenous Entity Descriptions in SNAC
This editorial guide considers best practices in the field as they apply to the Social Networks and Archival Context (SNAC) but can be adapted for use in creation of entity records, particularly EAC-CPF records, in other platforms. Drafted by Indigenize SNAC (Inverting Colonial Archival Structures: Increasing Discovery and Access for Indigenous Communities through SNAC).
Other SAA-Approved Arrangement & Description Standards
Glossaries & Terminology
Canadian Conservation Institute – Condition Reporting-Paintings Part III: Glossary of Terms
The Materials Information and Technical Resources for Artists (MITRA) online resource
Corning Museum of Glass – Glass Dictionary
International Print Center, New York – Glossary of Printmaking Terms
Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts (CCAHA) Preservation Glossary (with photos)
The Book and Paper Group Glossary of Terms (American Institute for Conservation)
Fine Arts Conservancy Glossary for Works on Paper
Museums & Galleries of NSW's Visual Glossary of conservation terms