Large Number of Records in MDS-Visual Materials

MDS-Visual Material subscribers can expect volume 33, issue 47 to contain more than the usual number of records. The large number of records, approximately 5,000, are the result of a multi-year project to consolidate item-level descriptions for pictures created as self-sufficient or published works. The records were originally created on external systems and recently loaded to the LC ILS. Most of the records contain links to digital images in the LC Prints & Photographs Online Catalog (http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/catalog.html).

This MDS-Visual Materials issue contains the following records:

              Daguerreotypes: ca. 735 records; full-level cataloging. 1839-1864. Primarily portraits; also architectural views and works of art. More background info at: http://lcweb2.loc.gov/pp/dagabt.html

              Documentary drawings: ca. 2,465 records; minimal level cataloging. 1783-1865. Primarily eyewitness sketches of Civil War scenes and events, including military personnel, battles, civilian activities, and landscapes. Also includes portraits, and American landscapes and structures from earlier periods.

              Carl Van Vechten photographs: 1,395 records; minimal level cataloging. 1932-1964. U.S. -- includes portraits of celebrities, especially artists, entertainers, and authors, including African Americans active in these fields. More background info at: http://lcweb2.loc.gov/pp/vvabt.html

              World's Transportation Commission: 584 lantern slides and 297 photo prints; minimal level cataloging. 1894-1896. Asia, Australia, and Oceania, showing scenes and sites, with an emphasis on transportation systems. More background info at: http://lcweb2.loc.gov/pp/wtcabt.html

Additional sets of Visual Material records will be loaded/distributed in the future as they are reviewed and migrated. Future record sets, approximately 37,000 records, include: panoramic and Lomax photos, theatrical and political posters, cartoons and illustration drawings. Questions regarding the scope and data content of these Visual Material records may be directed to:

                      Helena Zinkham

                      Prints and Photographs Division

                      Library of Congress

                      Washington, DC 20540-4160

                      email: hzin@loc.gov          telephone: (202) 707-2922

November 23, 2004