Scope: This procedure identifies the added tracings that CMS rare materials staff use to make rare books readily searchable by publication date, publisher and/or printer, and provenance (former owner). It also describes our policies concerning when to add these tracings.
Contact: Margaret Nichols
Unit: Cataloging & Metadata Services
Date last updated: 07/11/2019
Date of next review: March 2020
For pre-1800 European imprints and pre-1821 American imprints, we trace the publication date, printer, and publisher. For History of Science and Icelandic materials, we trace the date, printer, and publisher for all pre-1900 imprints.
650 _4 [Date] for publication date
651 _4 [Place]$v Imprints (printer/publisher's name)
Examples:
650 _4 1793
651 _4 London (England) $v Imprints (Millar, Andrew)
For imprints of any date, we trace provenance, i.e. the names of former owners of the book, using appropriate MARC relator terms in $e to designate their relation to the book. Add $5NIC at the very end of the field, since the provenance tracing is copy-specific.
700 1_ (or 710 2_) for provenance
If the person signed the book: ",$e signer" at the end
If the person put a bookplate or stamp in the book: ",$e former owner" at the end
If the book was inscribed to someone else by the person: ",$e inscriber" at the end
If the book was inscribed to the person: ",$e former owner" at the end
Example:
700 1_ White, Andrew Dickson,$d1832-1918, $e former owner. $5 NIC
The provenance note itself goes in 852 $z (a public note) on the MARC holdings record. We use this phrasing: "Provenance: name of former owner (form of provenance evidence)." For a book inscribed to someone, use this phrasing: "Provenance: Inscribed to x by y, date." Other phrasing may be needed for a more complex situation.
Example:
852 00 $b rmc $k Rare Books $h BX1673 $i .L62 $z Provenance: Andrew Dickson White (bookplate).
We do not trace donors. (When we traced them in the past, confusion resulted when patrons searched under authors who were also donors.) Instead, we make a 541 note on the holdings record (with 1st indicator 1) for the donor's name, followed by $c Gift. If the donor wishes to remain anonymous, use 541 first indicator 0; this will prevent the information from displaying to the public.
Example:
541 1 $a M.H. Abrams $c Gift