Using the Collection

Helpful Hints for Using the Collection

Each image has metadata attached to it. For researchers interested in using the collection to its greatest potential, we have outlined some of the metadata categories below.

Identifiers/Media:

Each image has two unique identification numbers. The “identifiers” number comes from the incomplete catalog of slides. The “Media” number refers to the slide’s current relative position in the boxes that now hold the slides. 

Titles:

Titles have been created by the cataloging team, except in rare instances where documentation existed about Arquin’s original title. These titles are drawn either from the existing catalog or the slide mounts. 

Subject:

Subject terms were generated from the subjects of the images and the information contained within them. We used the controlled vocabulary of the Art and Architecture Thesaurus provided by the Getty Research Institute. If you are having trouble finding the search term you need, searching Getty first may help you.

Description:

Descriptions come either from the existing written catalog, from other existing documentation (such as Arquin’s papers), or from the slide mounts themselves. This means that this description is as close to Arquin’s original information for the slide as we can get. It also means that some of the terms you might find in the description reflect historical attitudes and ideas. Please be aware, for example, if you see the term “Indian Life” in the description, that this is Arquin’s term that we are preserving in this data field.

Geographic Data:

Nearly every image has geographic data attached to it. In the instances where we could be precise, we have narrowed it down to the city, region, and country. If this was not possible, we have identified the region and country or simply just the country. In addition to the geographic names, we have also included latitude and longitude coordinates for each image.

These coordinates are also mapped into our mapping feature. By clicking on the geographic location on the map, you can see how many images are associated with that place and begin to explore those images.

Errors:

If you think that we have made a cataloging error or can offer us more precise data, please contact us! We would be happy for the feedback.