245 (Title Statement) Required
Titles of collections are almost always devised, based on the content of the collection, and generally begin with the phrase "[Genre term] of ..." E.g. [Photographs of San Francisco] or [Prints of London].
If the material does not bear a collective title, provide a title for the group and enclose it in square brackets. Devised titles should generally be in English and should be both descriptive and distinctive, thereby highlighting the factor(s) that characterize the group as a whole. For large bodies of material, it is often useful to include the word “collection,” or (in the case of true archival collections) “archive” for clarity. Strive for consistency in title construction. Types of data appropriate for inclusion in collective titles include:
- name of collection (for previously named collections)
- name of creator, creating body, collector, or source (provenance)
- artistic school or style
- geographic locations
- genre/form of material
- principal subjects depicted—persons, events, activities, and objects
- the date or span dates of what is being depicted if different from the date of publication or execution
When describing material that collectively bears a title (e.g., a subgroup level at which file headings or job names appear on or with the material), transcribe the title as you would any other title (See the 245 section in the Visual Materials Cataloging manual for a discussion of transcribed titles.) Do not enclose a transcribed title in square brackets.
Always make a note on the source of the title proper.
Do not include a general material designation (GMD). Do not include a statement of responsibility unless transcribing it along with an associated transcribed title.
245 00 ‡a [Caroline and Erwin Swann collection of caricature and cartoon]
245 00 ‡a [Collection of photographic views of mountains in Britain]
245 00 ‡a [Interstate 35W bridge collapse photograph collection]
245 00 ‡a [Tudor Engineering Company photograph archive]
245 00 ‡a [Prints of persons and places mentioned in Samuel Butler's Hudibras]
(Comment: Prints inserted in an extra‐illustrated copy of a separately cataloged published book)
246 field: Variant form of title
Record variant titles by which a group may be known if they differ substantially from the 245 title statement and provide a useful access point. If most or all of the individual items have the same title information and it is considered important, make an added entry for the title.
264 (Place of Publication, distribution, production, creation, etc.)
All elements may be included in group‐level records if appropriate. Bracket all elements that are supplied. In most cases, only the date element (subfield ‡c) is appropriate. Use 264 subfields ‡a, ‡b, ‡e, and ‡f only if the same place and/or the same publisher, printer, printseller, etc. apply to all items in the group. Use a single date or inclusive dates in the subfield ‡c, as appropriate.
264 ‡c [1968]
264 ‡c [1655-1687]
264 ‡c [between ca. 1500 and ca. 1600]
264 ‡a [Philadelphia], ‡c [between 1850 and 1890]
264 ‡a [Littleton, N.H.] : ‡b [B.W. Kilburn], ‡c [between 1898 and 1899]
Optionally, indicate dates or date spans most heavily represented as a bulk date.
264 ‡c [between 1924 and 1963, bulk between 1940 and 1950]