Creating an Archaeology Object record in MIMSY XG
University of Alberta Archaeology Collection
Created March 30, 2012
The Object record is the main source of catalogue information that should include all relevant details
on the artifact, provenance, and its status in the collection. Avoid leaving fields blank, and fill out
additional flexi-fields whenever possible. Save your work frequently and at the end of the record by
pressing the Save button (F10). Note that Field-level Help (F1) is available for each field.
Creating the Object Record:
1. Open the Object authority.
2. Begin a new record, either select “Create Record” from the Record dropdown menu or
press F6.
3. Accession No.: Enter the number with no spaces in the three part format, e.g., 2012.1.1. For
objects accessioned before 2000, use the last 3 digits of the year, e.g., 996.1.12. If there are
additional or prior accession numbers associated with the object, list them in the flexi-field
by opening it and pressing F6, and then entering the numbers and their origin.
4. Object Status: Select whether the object is an original, replica, etc. from the pop-up list by
clicking the Pop-up List button or pressing F9.
5. Category: Select what type of object is being catalogued from the pop-up list. Consult “Subcategory names and definitions” under the help menu to see what objects fall into each
category. Choose ONE category per object. Only use “various categories” for parent lot
records.
6. Sub-category: Select the object sub-category from the pop-up list. See “Sub-category names
and definitions” under the help menu for the controlled list of terms and their definitions. If
the object falls into multiple sub-categories, select all that apply and MIMSY will
automatically separate them with a semi-colon. Only use “various sub-categories” for
parent lot records. Under “Attributor,” select yourself or another individual from the pop-up
list. Under “Date”, enter the date the name was assigned. If it is the current date, press F9.
7. Object Name: Enter the proper typological name for the object or, if no typology applies, a
succinct, descriptive term or phrase. Indicate any published sources used to assign that
name under “Source” in the flexi-field. Under “Attributor,” select yourself or another
individual from the pop-up list. Under “Date”, enter the date the name was assigned. If it is
the current date, press F9.
8. Item Count: Accept the default of “1,” or enter another number. If you are entering a
parent lot record, change the number to reflect the number of specimens in the lot.
9. Whole/Part: Accept the default of “whole” or select “lot” for a parent lot record or “part”
for a child record from the pop-up list. To link child records to the parent lot record, click the
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lever next to the field title. This will open a new window. The parent record name will
appear on the left column. Search for child records by entering the Object Name or
Accession Number in the “Object Set” search box and press F8. You may also search for a
different desired group or “parent” record using the “Link To” search box. When the desired
child records are listed in the right column, drag and and drop them on the “group” record
name in the left column.
10. Portion: Select the appropriate term from the pop-up list. If the object is complete, select
“complete.” If incomplete, select the best descriptive term, e.g., proximal fragment, rim,
base, etc. Leave this field blank for parent lot records.
11. Materials: Select the object’s material type from the pop-up list. Use the most specific term
possible. For parent lot records with various materials, select “various materials.” Enter the
colour of the specimen by opening the associated flexi-field, creating a new flexi-record, and
selecting colour from the pop-up list under “Component.” Use a Munsell book to determine
the colour, and provide the Munsell name as opposed to the number.
12. Technique: Select the technique made to create the object from the pop-up list. For
ceramics, faunal, or floral material, this field may or may not have a technique depending on
the specimen. Leave this field blank if the object was naturally produced or modified.
13. Cortex: Accept the default of “no” or click the checkbox to indicate that cortex is visible. For
non-lithic objects, leave this box unchecked.
14. Measurements: Enter measurements by opening the associated flexi-field and creating a
new flexi-record. Enter all measurements, as well as the portion being measured. The
display values will be automatically generated when you click or tab out of the flexi-record.
15. Inscriptions: If there is an inscription on the object, enter it into a flexi-record. Indicate the
“Method” and “Location” by selecting a term from the pop-up list. Create a new flexi-record
for each unique inscription. If there are none, leave this field blank.
16. Description: Enter a description of the object in complete sentences.
17. Culture: Select the archaeological culture term from the pop-up list. For replicas and casts,
indicate the culture of the original artifact. If unknown, select “unknown.” Leave blank if this
field does not apply to the object.
18. Geographic Cultural Area: Select the appropriate geographic term from the pop-up menu
based on the place collected and/or site. If unknown, select “unknown.” Leave blank if this
field does not apply to the object.
19. Period Designation: Select the appropriate period designation from the pop-up list. If
unknown, select “unknown.” Leave blank if this field does not apply to the object.
20. Artifact Age: Enter the artifact age in years before present (years BP) with the earlier date
first and a single dash separating them. To convert dates from BC/BCE, add the year to
1950. To convert dates from AD/CE, subtract the year from 1950. Once entered, open the
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associated flexi-field and ensure that the date is properly parsed into earliest and latest year
in the flexi-record. Enter additional dates if necessary, and specify the method of dating in
“Relationship.” Leave blank if the artifact age is not available or this field does not apply to
the object.
21. Place Collected: Enter the narrowest place name (e.g., Old Crow River) and tab or click into
the next field. If the name exists in the Places Authority as entered, it will auto-fill the field.
Or select the name from pop-up list by either searching on the name or drilling down to the
name via the hierarchy of names. Select the most specific place term and click “Copy
Hierarchy.” If there is uncertainty about the place collected, only include the details in
which you are confident. Do not manually enter the place collected. Leave blank if it the
information is unknown or this field does not apply to the object.
22. Site: Select the site from the pop-up list. Leave blank if this field does not apply to the
object.
23. Provenience: Enter the provenience information, or select “surface collection” or
“unknown” from the pop-up list. Leave blank if this field does not apply to the object.
24. Collector: Select the person who collected the object from the pop-up list. If there is more
than one collector, select both and they will be automatically separated by a semi-colon. If
the name does not exist in the list, then it may be added “on the fly”. The name must be
formatted as follows: Lastname, Firstname (in order for a name to appear on this list, it
must first exist in the People Authority and have the “Collector” checkbox checked.) Leave
blank if this field does not apply to the object.
25. Date Collected: Enter the date the object was collected in the format YYYY-MM-DD. If the
day is unknown, enter the year and month. Leave blank if the date is unknown or if this field
does not apply to the object.
26. Maker: Select the individual or entity that made that object from the pop-up list. For
prehistoric makers, select “unknown.” For replicas and casts, select the replica or cast
maker as opposed to the original object maker. If unknown, select “unknown.” Leave blank
if this field does not apply to the object.
27. Source: Select the source of the object from the pop-up list. If the name does not exist in
the list, then it may be added “on the fly”. The name must be formatted as follows:
Lastname, Firstname (in order for a name to appear on this list, it must first exist in the
People Authority and have the “Source” checkbox checked.)
28. Note: If necessary, enter additional comments and notes about the object, its significance,
and its collection history into the display field.
29. Lot Summary: Enter the individual accession numbers that make up a lot in this field. This is
only used for lot records.
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30. Legal Status: This field automatically defaults to “ARCHAEOLOGY COLLECTION.” No
additional information is required.
31. Home Location: Accept the default of “Archaeology Teaching Lab (1-28)” or enter another
home location.
32. Location: If applicable, create a location record and link it to the object record through the
accession number.
33. Condition: If applicable, create a condition record and link it to the object record through
the accession number.
34. Valuation: If applicable, create a valuation record and link it to the object record through
the accession number.
35. Loan Allowed?: Accept the default of “yes” or uncheck the box to indicate no.
36. Publish?: Accept the default of “yes” or uncheck the box to indicate no.
37. Linked Media: If necessary, open the associated flexi-field and create a new flexi-record.
Use F9 to bring up the pop-up list of media records and select the one that is relevant to the
object record.
38. Linked Objects: If necessary, open the associated flexi-field and create a new flexi-record.
Select the relevant accession numbers from the pop-up list to link to the object.
39. Linked People: Do not use this field. Relevant people information should be entered in
Collector, Source, and Maker.
40. Linked Publications: If necessary, open the associated flexi-field and create a new flexirecord. Select the publication from the pop-up list. Give the relationship of the publication
to the specimen (e.g., tool type description, a publication on that particular tool, etc.) in the
“Relationship” field. In the “Portion” and “Pages” fields, indicate the chapter and page
numbers if available. Check the “Illustrated” box if applicable, and mention the relevant
illustrations in the “Notes” field.
41. Linked Subjects: If applicable, open the associated flexi-field and create a new flexi-record.
Select the relevant subject from the pop-up list and link it to the object.
42. Linked Taxonomy: If the object is made from faunal material, use the pop-up list to select
the organism based on the most specific taxonomic level known.
43. Linked Terms: If applicable, open the associated flexi-field and create a new flexi-record.
Select the relevant term from the thesaurus pop up list and link it to the object.
44. Created By: This automatically displays the MIMSY user who created the record.
45. Create Date: This automatically displays the date the record was created.
46. Updated By: This automatically displays the MIMSY user who updated the record.
47. Update Date: This automatically displays the date the record was updated.
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