In the current library environment, in which libraries and museums are providing access to their resources through new and developing metadata standards, a guide to creating cataloging and metadata records to provide that access is long-awaited. Cataloging Cultural Objects is just such a guide and fills a long empty niche in the library literature. Authored by five prominent members of the visual resources community, it brings significant expertise and experience to the challenges of providing access to not only the works themselves, but also the images used to represent them.
Cataloging Cultural Objects (CCO) is organized in three parts: general guidelines, elements, and authorities. The general guidelines section begins with the assertion that CCO is not itself a metadata element set, but that it can be mapped to other already established element sets such as VRA Core. It goes on to list 10 principles that form the foundation of the guide and makes a distinction between a work and the image of a work as it might be depicted in a photograph or other medium. The general guidelines cover other issues such as when to create a minimal record, the types of relationships that might exist between works, database design, and authority files.
The second section of CCO addresses the elements that should be included in a record for a work. Chapters cover object naming; creator; physical characteristics; stylistic, cultural, and chronological information; location and geography; subject; class; description; view. The importance of each of these areas to the researcher is clearly described, and each chapter addresses terminology, cataloging rules and guidelines for the presentation of the data. Additionally, each chapter includes significant lists of resources for standards, thesauri and other resources useful to the cataloger. Rounding out every chapter is a series of examples which thoroughly illustrate the main points of the chapter.
Finally, the third section of CCO covers the authorities necessary to support the cataloging of works and images. Chapters cover personal and corporate names, geographic places, concepts, and subjects. As in the previous section, each chapter follows a pattern of discussing terminology, rules, and presentation of the data.
Cataloging Cultural Objects is an excellent resource for the metadata specialist who is working with cultural works and their images. As the book was not meant to be read straight through, but rather used as a resource for cataloging, some sections are repeated throughout; however, that does not detract from the valuable nature of the materials presented. It concludes with a useful bibliography, glossary, and index.