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Date

 

 

 

Element Name

Date

 

Definition

Dates associated with events in the life cycle of the resource.

 

Where Can the Date Information be Found?

Item Type Information Sources
Creation date for this kind of item is the date or range of dates when:
For text
  • title page
  • copyright page
  • cover or inside cover page




the text was published or printed
For images
  • bottom or back of a photograph
  • a time-stamp
  • envelope, slip cover, or case


a photograph or slide was taken
For maps
  • title in a caption or legend
  • notes around the outside of the map

the map was printed
For music scores
  • top of page
  • title page
  • table of contents

the music was finished (handwritten) or printed
For videos
  • title or credit screen(s)
  • label on disc
  • container cover

the video was released
For sound files
  • information on disc/cassette
  • container information


the disc/tape was issued
For computer files
  • title page/screen
  • statement in a header/footer


the content was finished

In some cases the date may come from accompanying or supplementary information.

 

How Date Works in the Metadata Form

Parts:
1. Date qualifier -- drop-down menu
2. Date -- text field
Repeatable?
Yes - to include different kinds of date information, click 'Add' to repeat all field parts; each individual date type (creation, submission, harvested, etc.) cannot be repeated

 

How Should the Date be Filled in?

General Date Rules

  • If no date can be found, leave the field blank
  • For each date, be sure to choose the appropriate date type from the controlled vocabulary

 

  • Always format dates appropriately:

 

Guideline Form(s)
Examples
 
  • Basic Format
      • Write dates Year-Month-Day, separating the sections with a single hyphen
      • Include partial dates only if the year or only the month and year are known


YYYY-MM-DD

YYYY
YYYY-MM

1985-03-27


1865-05
  • Date Ranges
      • Follow the same basic format but separate the dates with a slash mark
      • If a date range includes only a start date, use the word 'open' at the end
      • If a date range includes only an end date, use the word 'unknown' at the start



YYYY-MM-DD/ YYYY-MM-DD

YYYY-MM-DD/OPEN

UNKNOWN/YYYY-MM-DD


1941-12/1945-08


1889-05-13/OPEN


UNKNOWN/1914-06-02
  • Uncertain dates
  • If a date is uncertain question marks can be used to fill in blanks, or at the end (it is preferred that a year have at least a general decade - YYY?)
  • If a date is approximate, a tilde can be used at the end of the date
  • Put [square brackets] around dates that do not come from the item itself

YYYY-MM-DD?
YYY?-MM-DD
YYY?

YYYY-MM-DD~

[YYYY-MM-DD]


1958-09-16?
192?-12-06
189?


1879-03-29~

[1962-04]

  • Dates with timestamps
  • If the item has an exact time associated with it, use 'T' to separate the date and time
  • This is rarely used and must be exact

YYYYMMDDThhmmss
20080502T150751
  • B. C. Dates
  • Include a hyphen at the front of the date

-YYYY-MM-DD

-0601

 

Creation Dates

  • Whenever possible, enter an original resource creation date
  • Be sure to select "Creation" as the date type from the drop-down menu
  • If the creation date is unknown, leave the field blank
  • When the resource being described is a collection, a date range can be used to describe the creation date range of all the resources

 

  • Creation date refers to the date of the exact item for the record, even if it is a derivation:
  • If the item is a reprint of an original text:
  • Use the date of the reprint
  • Include a note about the original text and printing date
  • If the item is a copy negative:
  • Use the date that the copy negative was created
  • The date of the original photographs may be used in coverage
  • A note about postcards and greeting cards:
  • If there is no letter or message written on the card:
          • The item is treated as a photograph or piece of artwork
          • Use the date that the photograph was taken or the drawing was done
  • If the card has a letter or message written on/in it:
          • The item is treated as a piece of correspondence
          • Use the date that the letter was written or that the card was postmarked
          • If it is important, the date of the picture can be included as part of the coverage

 

Special Dates

  • Use other types of dates only when they are relevant:
    • Date Harvested - Date that a web-resource was captured for archival purposes
    • Submission Date - Date that the item was submitted for approval by an organization, institution, or agency
    • Acceptance Date - Date that the item was approved by an organization, institution, or agency
  • Submission and acceptance dates are primarily used for patents, but may be used for other items if those types of dates are associated with the item

 

Other Examples


[Letter from Zavala to Santa Anna, March 7, 1829]
Original Resource Creation Date: 1829-03-07
Painting: A Scene from "The Beggar's Opera"
Original Resource Creation Date: 1728/1729
Digital photograph: [Bull riding at the Cowtown Coliseum]
Original Resource Creation Date: 20031227T091640
Court case: Documents pertaining to B. C. Wallace as the receiver of the estate and guardian of Campbell minors, cause no. 532, 1896-1904
Original Resource Creation Date: 1896-11-13/1904-12-08
Farmer's bulletin: Diseases of sheep and goats.
Original Resource Creation Date 1943-09
University catalog: Catalog of Hardin-Simmons University, 1989-1990 Undergraduate Bulletin
Original Resource Creation Date [1989]
Photograph: Crazy Theatre With Car
Original Resource Creation Date 1914~
Postcard: [Hamilton Hotel, Laredo, Texas]
Original Resource Creation Date 1910-01-23
Archived website: U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force
Original Resource Creation Date: 2004
Date Harvested: 2009-07-01

 

Comments

  • To express the time period(s), date, or date range associated with the intellectual content of the resource, use the Coverage element.
    • For example, a book published in 1976 that is about Texas history from first statehood to 1964 would have an original resource creation date of 1976, but a coverage date range of 1846 - 1964.
  • Recommended best practice for encoding the date value is defined in the proposed standards from the Library of Congress: Extended Date Time Format

 

Resources

This page is maintained by Hannah Tarver last modified Thursday, March 17, 2011. 07:36 PM
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