Six fields that keep a record honest.
Move from title and accession to material, provenance, chronology and labels. Every field has a visible limit and a responsible source.
A title is a doorway, not a verdict
Read the exact museum title, the visible object and the limits between a catalogue label and a familiar name.
Open cabinet card02 / ACCESSIONThe number keeps the object attached
Use accession and inventory numbers to keep photographs, labels, catalogues and later corrections connected to one exact record.
Open cabinet card03 / MATERIALMaterial needs more than a color
Separate what a surface looks like in a case from what the responsible record identifies as stone, metal, faience, wood or organic material.
Open cabinet card04 / PROVENANCEProvenance is a chain, not a place word
Follow excavation, ownership, transfer and collection history without turning one location or display case into a complete origin story.
Open cabinet card05 / CHRONOLOGYDates are ranges with reasons
Read reigns, periods, reused objects, restorations and catalogue conventions before treating one date as a simple timestamp.
Open cabinet card06 / LABELSThe label is part of the object encounter
Read typography, placement, language and missing information as part of how a museum makes a record available to visitors.
Open cabinet card