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Artefacts as sources

Posted: 05 Apr 2016 09:05
by Peter Collier
I have uncovered an old family bible containing BMD events, and need to create a source for it in FH.

Clearly, the publication details for the bible are essesntially irrelevant – it needs to be treated as an artefact instead (you couldn't go and find any copy of this bible for the information it contains, it needs to be this specific, inscribed copy). I can see several possible ways of going about this, but I can't decide which might be best. For the sake of future consistency, I want to adopt a method now that can be readily used for any other artefacts I may come across later.

How do other people go about recording such artefacts as sources in FH?

Re: Artefacts as sources

Posted: 05 Apr 2016 09:20
by tatewise
I would record it as a Source record in the conventional way.
Text From Source would hold relevant transcripts from the artefact.
The Media tab could have images taken from the artefact.
The Source Type should reflect the type of artefact. Either just use Artefact or more detailed categories such as Bible, Newspaper, Missive, etc.
Other details such as Author and Publication should relate to the owner of the artefact.

If the BMD details are on many different pages, then when the Citations are created, the Where within Source field could identify where the associated detail is located for each particular Fact.

Re: Artefacts as sources

Posted: 05 Apr 2016 10:09
by AdrianBruce
I would leave the Author and Publisher stuff blank, as you suggest, and just describe the artefact in the title - e.g. Family Bible of Smith Family of Somewhere. Actually, it would be useful to record in the source record how you know whose Bible it is. If really simple, I suppose that this data could be inserted into the Publication data - e.g. "Inherited from Grandpa Jack". Then see how it looks in a report and alter it if it doesn't read straight. You do need to record who has the object now and it would seem sensible that this be done by the Repository being set to "Personal Collection of X".

Try it and see, is my best advice.