Cataloguing tradition and present in Germany
- Extensive cataloguing according to DFG (German Research Council) cataloguing rules since 1960's
- Generous funding for manuscript cataloguing (~ 2 weeks per ms)
- basically two data formats: MXML and TEI (plus very few MARC)
- TEI is (and will be) the preferred import as well as export format
- In Wolfenbüttel (and at other institutions/projects)
- cataloguers are supplied with a TEI template file
- the template is based on a TEI customisation
Challenges with using TEI for manuscript cataloguing
- importance of visualisation ("What would the text look like in print?")
- paragraph structures (e.g. layout, decoNote, provenance, etc) vs. 'atomic' information
- importance of whitespace and punctuation
- when or whether to use <p> at all?
- Being layout-oriented, cataloguers tend to be 'creative' in order to achieve a desired output
- Does a <msItem> constitute a paragraph in the output?
- generate index entries from certain fields vs. explicit encoding of index entries
Future of cataloguing in Germany
-
Berlin, Leipzig, Wolfenbüttel and Munich are about to set up a new centralised database for manuscript related information (Handschriftenportal)
- HAB being responsible for data exchange interfaces and schema control
- Introduction of the distinction between the manuscript and the catalogue →
Cultural object (document) (KOD) - Introduction of a unified identifier for each manuscript (ISMI International standardised manuscript identifier)
- MXML to be replaced by a new internal format of the Handschriftenportal
Definition of minimal data set
| Field | Authority control | TEI coverage |
|---|---|---|
| Place of owning institution | TGN | msIdentifier/settlement |
| Name of owning institution | ISIL | msIdentifier/repository |
| ID of owning institution | GND-ID | msIdentifier/repository/@ref |
| Identification of cultural object | Shelfmark survey | msIdentifier/idno msIdentifier/altIdentifier[@type='shelfmark'] |
| internal ID | msIdentfier/idno[@type] | |
| [ISMI/GND-ID] | msIdentfier/idno[@type] |
Definition of Core fields
| Field | Sample Values | TEI coverage (<msDesc> children) |
|---|---|---|
| Title | 'Augustinus', 'Medizinische Sammelhandschrift' | head/title |
| Material | 'Parchment', 'Paper' | physDesc/objectDescription/supportDesc/(support | @material) |
| No. of leaves | II + 215 + II | physDesc/objectDescription/supportDesc/extent/measure[@type] |
| Size of leaves | 25 × 15 cm | physDesc/objectDescription/supportDesc/extent/dimensions |
| Measurements of leaves | '2°', 'Folio' | physDesc/objectDescription/supportDesc/extent/measure[@type] |
| Place of origin | 'Northern France?' | history/origin/origPlace or head/origPlace |
| Date of origin | 'late 14th c' | history/origin/origDate or head/origDate |
Definition of Core fields (cont'd)
| Field | Sample Values | TEI coverage (<msDesc> children) |
|---|---|---|
| Writing language(s) | 'en', 'la', etc (major languages only) | msContents/textLang or msContents/{model.msItemPart}/@xml:lang |
| Decoration | (yes|no) | --- |
| Musical notation | (yes|no) | --- |
| Form type | 'Codex', 'Rotolus', etc. | physDesc/objectDescription/@form |
| Object status | 'existing', 'lost', 'destroyed', etc | --- |
Other aspects of using TEI
- Cataloguing born-digital in TEI is way more straight forward than retro-convert existing catalogs into TEI documents
- Would it be sufficient to supply a fulltext with some information encoded (most important search fields)?
Some observations on the TEI usage
| Aspect / Field | Usage in Bod | Usage in HAB |
|---|---|---|
| Manuscript title | MS. Add. A. 2 | KOD: Jacobus de Voragine (Cod. Guelf. 289 Helmst.)
Cat.: Beschreibung von Cod. Guelf. 289 Helmst. |
| Dating: When is the 15th c? | notBefore="1400" notAfter="1500" | notBefore="1401" notAfter="1500" |
| Place of origin | country + region + settlement | --- (no nesting elements used at the moment) |
| Writing space | supportDesc | layoutDesc |
| msItem structures | multiple <incipit>s possible | nested <msItem>s |
| identification of works | msItem/title/@key | --- (keywords in profileDesc/textClass) |
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