Encoded Archival Description Tag Library, Version 2002
by Society of American Archivists and the Library of Congress
A Review
Encoded Archival Description Tag Library, Version 2002 supercedes the 1998 Version 1.0 of the tag library. Version 2002, like the previous volume, is a companion to the Society of American Archivist’s Encoded Archival Description Application Guidelines, Version 1.0. Where the latter volume is written in a more narrative form in order to facilitate understanding EAD and its implementation, the Tag Library, Version 2002 presents the elements and attributes needed by archivists and others needing to turn their finding aids into the encoded archival description (or EAD) structure.
The volume was prepared by the Encoded Archival Description Working Group of the Society of American Archivists and the Network Development and MARC Standards Office of the Library of Congress. While each group has worked together on this volume, each holds a different responsibility for its creation and continued use. The Encoded Archival Description Working Group is responsible for updating and editing the EAD Document Type Definition (or DTD) and the tag library. The Network Development and MARC Standards Office of the Library of Congress is responsible for maintaining the online EAD documentation and the EAD Website (located at <http://lcweb.loc.gov/ead/>).
Certain changes appear in this volume, which have grown out of the collaborative needs from the international use of encoding standards. The EAD Working Group needed to address these international standards in order to maintain compatibility in various parts of the EAD structure. Besides addressing international needs, the Working Group also made changes in some of the elements and attributes that users of EAD found needed improvement. These changes are outlined in the Preface.
The volume is arranged in a very useful way. The first section covers EAD attributes and the properties and values they cover. The main part of the volume is comprised of the extensive alphabetical listing of the EAD elements. Each attribute entry covers a description of the element, where it may fall, and what it may contain. For those writing up their EAD finding aids, the compilers include useful examples for each attribute and its use.
The volume concludes with four appendices. Appendix A charts the metadata "crosswalks" between EAD and MARC21 and with ISAD(G), the international metadata standard. Appendix B outlines those standards that were previously used in the DTD in Version 1.0 and are no longer recommended or are obsolete. Appendix C has the examples of finding aids outlined in Version 1.0 which are updated to the new version’s tags. The last appendix contains an alphabetical listing of element names and its equivalent name using the tag library nomenclature, easing the user’s confusion in finding the correct element to pick.
The Encoded Archival Description Tag Library, Version 2002 is an essential reference for archivists, librarians, and others using encoded archival description for their finding aids. The book is thoughtfully laid out, filled with the details of element use and examples of that use. Those who only have Version 1.0 of the tag library will want to update their bookshelves quickly with this volume.
Published in 2002 by: Society of American Archivists, Chicago. (314 pp.) ISBN 1-931666-00-8. $31.00 (SAA members $26.00)
Reviewed by Jacquelyn K. Sundstrand
Manuscript and Archives Librarian
Library Special Collections Department
University of Nevada, Reno
Last updated: April 8, 2003
http://www.olacinc.org/reviews/saa.html
neumeist@buffalo.edu