Map catalogers eagerly awaited the revision of Cartographic Materials, the classic, authoritative manual, long out of print. The revised manual came out in 2003 and is intended for use as a supplement in conjunction with the 2002 revision of AACR2. Its aim is to help catalogers to interpret and apply the rules given in Chapters 1 and 3 and, where necessary, Chapters 2, 9, 12 and 13 of AACR2 (2002 Rev.).

Cartographic Materials contains 14 chapters, 10 appendices, a glossary, a concordance, and an index. The manual is issued in loose-leaf format to aid in convenient updating of the base text. The manual is arranged according to the areas of cataloging description. The appendices contain guidelines and technical details on various issues of map cataloging, such as instruction on choosing the access points, determining scale, coordinates and date of situation. Moreover, additional information useful for cataloging series, sets, atlases, early cartographic materials, electronic resources, remote sensing images, serials, and integrating resources are found in the other appendices.

The manual has been expanded to include rules, up-to-date examples, applications, and policies for early cartographic materials, cartographic electronic resources, remote sensing images, serials and integrating resources. The glossary, including relevant parts from the glossary of AACR2, is expanded to incorporate many additional terms relating to electronic resources, cartography, and map production methods.

The rule numbers follow a similar ordering system to that used in AACR2, starting with the Area designation. Moreover, to facilitate reference to AACR2 rules, the corresponding AACR2 rule number is given in parentheses in the right hand margin next to each Cartographic Materials (CM) rule. Further assistance is provided in the section following many of the rules, with the addition of information designated as "Applications" and "Policies". When present, "Applications" interpret the rules and provide guidance for their use. Less frequently given, but equally valuable, "Policies" are provided to identify what practices are specifically followed for the rule in question by selected national agencies responsible for cataloging cartographic materials.

There were many significant changes made in AACR2 (2002 Rev.) that have had an impact on everyday cartographic materials cataloging. For instance, the terms "cartographic materials" and "electronic resources" were added to the list of General Material Designations in AACR2. In Area 3 ("Mathematical and other material specific details"), there are rule changes with respect to materials with more than one scale statement. Also, the ability to record coordinates in decimal degrees (a method of identifying coordinates used heavily in metadata and GIS schemes) is now an option (AACR2 3.3D1) that can be included in bibliographic records.

With the change in AACR2 (2002 Rev.) of the label for Chapter 9 from "computer files" to "electronic resources", the foremost impact to catalogers of cartographic electronic resources is the identification of the chief source of information in Cartographic Materials (0C7). The list of "Chief source of information for electronic resources" has grown to include title screen(s), main menus, program statements, initial display(s) of information, home page(s), the file header(s) including "Subject:" lines, encoded metadata, and the physical carrier or its labels. These are considered to be the formally presented evidence. In cases where the information varies in completeness, the rule instructs the cataloger to select the source that provides the most complete information. The manual also provides detailed instructions on what to do when the information is not available from the resource itself.

The manual also includes interpretations of new rules for digital geospatial data. In order to record the more technical description accompanying geospatial data, two new elements of description have appeared recently in map cataloging guidelines: "digital graphic representation" (AACR2) and "geospatial reference data" (Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata). The highly technical concept of "geospatial reference data" is explained in Appendix H on "Cartographic electronic resources". Catalogers who have avoided cataloging digital spatial data because of the lack of up-to-date cataloging rules should be pleased that there is finally solid guidance for this new type of cartographic material.

There is a great deal of useful information in the appendices, which can be demonstrated here with just a few well-chosen examples. Catalogers of cartographic electronic resources will find it useful to read the section on metadata (H.6) in Appendix H, which describes where metadata can be found in CDs, DVD-ROMs, and Internet resources. As mentioned earlier, catalogers now have a choice of entering the coordinates as decimal degrees found in cartographic electronic resources, as opposed to the traditional sexagesimal system of degrees, minutes, and seconds. This is addressed in Appendix B, "Guidelines to determine scales and coordinates", with Table 9. For those who catalog remote-sensing images, Appendix J is devoted to that topic and covers the pertinent guidance necessary for that task.

This revision includes an expansion of the treatment of early cartographic material. Aside from the guidelines for rare maps that are interspersed within the rules, an appendix (G) on this subject is included, furnishing more useful information. It is based on Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Booksand Manual for Cataloging of Antiquarian Cartographic Materials and provides advice in cataloging early cartographic material. The excerpts from Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Books offer useful advice on working with early forms of print letters (G.1). Abbreviated forms of standard bibliographic references used for citation of published descriptions of rare maps are included (G.3). On the more difficult concepts of reproductions of early cartographic materials, definitions of facsimile, fakes, forgeries, original, reprint, reproduction, and re-strike are drawn from various established references sources (G.5). Three pages of the appendix are devoted to various factors to consider in identifying reproductions.

The Concordance has a list of rule numbers three and a half pages long (with four columns per page) showing the correlation between AACR2 rules to those found in this manual. It also has a similar list on two-thirds of a page (divided into two columns) correlating Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Book rules to those in Cartographic Materials. Both lists prove to be very useful when catalogers want to explore the other manuals for further explication.

With everything that is included in Cartographic Materials, it should be noted that the manual is not, nor was it intended to be, a single resource for map cataloging. In its function as a manual for guidance on the descriptive aspects of map cataloging, it does not cover subject analysis and headings nor the form of name, title, geographic or other headings. Instead, it is a substantial update of a resource long considered a "bible" for map catalogers. In that capacity, it is an authoritative and invaluable tool for cartographic catalogers, as well as catalogers who deal with cartographic materials on a more occasional basis. It is also an absolutely indispensable tool for libraries with a substantial map collection.

Published jointly in 2003 by: American Library Association ( Chicago , Ill. ), Canadian Library Association ( Ottawa , Ont.) and Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals ( London , Eng. ). ISBNs: 0-8389-3539-7 ( ALA ); 0-88802-305-7 (CLA); 1-85604-516-1 (CILIP). Price: $115 ( U.S. ); ALA member price: $103; ordering now through ALA also includes the 2004 Update Pages (ISBN: 0-8389-3549-4), normally priced at $35, or $31.50 for ALA members. (The "update pages" were not included as a part of this review).