Page Comparison

This overview of the data models in ArchivesSpace and the Digital Collections should make future conversations about these two websites easier.

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In the digital collections, the letter takes the form of a work: https://digital.sciencehistory.org/admin/works/wm117p03j

To place the work in the context of the collection’s archival arrangement, the D.C. gives you the following clues:

Collection

• The letter is part of a collection, the Beckman Collection.

  • A work can be part of more than one collection, but

  • A collection cannot be part of another collection.

• The work is part of a sub-series and a series within the Beckman collection.

Series arrangement

In the digital collections, series and sub-series arrangement is stored as an unordered sequence of strings attached to the work. In this case we have:

• Series Arrangement

  • Series I. Arnold O. Beckman Files

  • Sub-series 1. Correspondence

• Each string concatenates the type of metadata ( Sub-series), the identifier, (I.), and the title of the grouping: (Arnold O. Beckman Files).

  • These are stored separately in ArchivesSpace.

• There’s no ordering information to encode the fact that a series is more important than a sub-series.

• There’s no way to order the sub-series within a given series, or to order the series within a collection.

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• This ASpace Reference number can tie a work or collection in the D.C. to a file, sub-series or series in ArchivesSpace - any description level that is an archival object.

Physical Location

• The work’s physical location is encoded as set of seven keys (box; folder; page; part; volume; shelfmark; and reel). Archival records in the D.C. so far have only used box, folder, and reel. (The others are in use to catalog rare books and museums items).

• For this work, all the keys except box and folder are blank

  • “Box” is the string “1”; “Folder” is the string “29”.

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In ArchivesSpace, the letter takes the form of a digital object:

• URL: https://sciencehistory.libraryhost.com/admin/digital_objects/247#tree::digital_object_247

• Digital objects in ArchivesSpace are currently not published; they are invisible to the public.

• Title is the same as the D.C. work title.

• The digital object contains as part of its metadata the URL to the “work” in the digital collections.

• The Is a digital object is NOT , as opposed to an archival object.

• Digital objectobjects were not part of the earliest versions of ArchivesSpace (as item-level description is a fairly uncommon in archival practice ).It is part of what ArchivesSpace calls a fileas it’s unsustainable at scale).

• The digital object has a link to the work in the digital collections. (The work does not have a link back to the digital object.)

• The digital object is part of a file.

File

• The file is a digital surrogate for a particular manila folder (folder 29 in box 1) which contains the letter.

  • The name is confusing; this has nothing to do with a computer file.

• A file is the lowest level of standard archival description as usually practiced in ArchivesSpace.

• Title: Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce - Air Pollution Committee, 1951-1954

• URL: https://archives.sciencehistory.org/repositories/3/archival_objects/10615

• Is an archival object (, as opposed to a digital object).

• Files, sub-series and series are all considered archival objects. Digital objects and collections are not.

• All archival objects have a unique ID called a Ref ID.

• The file has a Ref ID of:118f36c4c5a373e4b4a81253ebc85fae.

Subseries

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Sub-series

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• URL: https://archives.sciencehistory.libraryhost.comorg/adminrepositories/resources3/1#tree::archival_object_5objects/5

• Is an archival object, as opposed to a digital object.

• Ref ID: 66a590971707f99df33fc42be0d0c909

Series

• Title: Series I. Arnold O. Beckman Files, 1918-2009, undated

• Is an archival object.

• URL: https://archives.sciencehistory.libraryhost.comorg/adminrepositories/resources3/1#tree::archival_object_1objects/1

• Is an archival object, as opposed to a digital object.

• Ref ID: 5575406909262fd92cf89083a49f855b

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• Title: Beckman Historical

Collection

• URL: https://archives.sciencehistory.libraryhost.com/adminorg/repositories/3/resources/1#tree::resource_1External URL:

• The collection is not an archival object, but a resource.

  • Does not have a hexadecimal Ref ID.