Skip to Main Content

Hyku Cookbook: Description

Recipes for metadata entry for UofL Digital Collections

Description

This is a mandatory field. Every record must include a description.

sample of elements that show on each field page
Repeatable

Yes

Hyku term description
Mapping http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/description
Search Yes
Hide No
Vocabulary No
Definition An account of the content of the resource [providing background and specifics about it, comparable to what would appear on an exhibit label].
Usage

Enter a free-text account of the intellectual content of the resource and any specialized information not included in other elements.

Consider the audience, and the terminology they would likely use. Use the full form of words, at least the first time they are referenced, rather than abbreviations such as St. for Street, ca. for circa, Ky. for Kentucky, etc.

When describing a person who is part of a historically excluded or marginalized group, use the terms preferred by that person, if known. If you don’t know the full context of the information you are describing, it is usually best to default to “person-first” language. Capitalize terms such as Black, Indigenous, and Native, when referring to someone’s race. Do not capitalize “white.”

If the creator or their contemporaries used now outdated terms, include those historical terms in the archival description, followed by the current preferred terms in parentheses, if applicable. This reduces erasure and increases transparency.

Consider including:

  1. People depicted in the image or discussed in the audio, in the common usage (if different from the authority) form of their name; transcriptions of signs in the image; any history of objects or people in the resource; speculation about dates, events, or people related to the resource; points of interest; addresses of buildings depicted, etc.
    1. The trees on the back of the stage suggest this may have been a Christmas concert.
    2. The community was also known as Clifton Heights.
    3. Male School is visible on the hill.
    4. Sign in image reads: “Second Annual American Folk Song Festival.”
  2. Recto information note (any data on front of image or page). Note that “caption” implies something printed at the time of creation, while “handwritten,” etc. imply something added later.
    1. Caption on/accompanying image: ___.
    2. Handwritten on image: ___.
    3. Photographer’s reference number: ___.
    4. Imprinted on image: ___.
    5. Embossed on mount: ___.
    6. Handwritten on mount/border: ___.
  3. Verso information note (any data on back of image or page).
    1. Postmarked November 1, 1902 from Louisville, Ky.; one-cent stamp [for postcard].
    2. Handwritten on verso: ___.
    3. Stamped on verso: ___.
    4. Addressed to: ___ [for postcard].
  4. Accompanying material note.
    1. Note attached to image: ___.
  5. Additional information note.
    1. Note from UARC records: _____.
  6. Source of title or caption note.
    1. Title supplied by cataloger
    2. Caption taken from University of Louisville Photographic Archives records.
  7. See Also note.
    1. See article on collection website for more information.
  8. Harmful language statements or content warnings.
    1. The manner in which the indigenous people were described, presented, and treated may offend modern-day viewers.
    2. The University of Louisville does not endorse the content of, or expression carried by, these images. However, these images do present the attitudes and assumptions of some people of the period in which they were produced. The cultural record would be incomplete—and we would not be honest with ourselves and our past—if these images were omitted.
  9. Other reparative description explanations.
    1. We were unable to identify Mrs. Smith's first name. Please contact us if you have additional information.
Examples

Four bearded men, three kerchiefed women, and two young girls, all wearing patterned kimonos, stand outdoors on dirt ground in front of a white wall with windows and buttresses. From the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido, the Ainu's thick hair and tattoos (including tattooed mustaches on some of the women) fascinated fairgoers. Such "living displays" were intended to expose visitors to the World's Fair in St. Louis, Missouri, to other cultures. The manner in which the indigenous people were described, presented, and treated may offend modern-day viewers; the University of Louisville does not endorse the content of, or expression carried by, these images. However, these images do present the attitudes and assumptions of some people of the period in which they were produced. The cultural record would be incomplete—and we would not be honest with ourselves and our past—if these images were omitted.

Artist's book by Susan Lowdermilk. / Includes the text of William Stafford's poem A ritual to read to each other on inside cover flap. / Limited ed. of 25 signed and numbered copies. / "This book was created in reaction against the US/Iraq and Afghanistan war. The two-dimensional woodcut image that makes up the tunnel structure was originally titled, 'Peace Inside the Noise' and was meant to stand on it own. As a tunnel book, I feel the piece visually and conceptually supports Stafford's message in his poem, 'A Ritual to Read to Each Other'--A plea for reliance on community and cooperation for peace and harmony"--Artist's statement from 23 Sandy Gallery website. / "Tunnel book with three panel wrap around cover... Text set in Gill Sans Condensed, printed from polymer plates at lone goose press, Eugene, Oregon. Woodcut image printed on Zerkall Niddegen paper by Susan Lowdermilk, 2007"--23 Sandy Gallery website.

Simple bridge over a river with the top of a waterfall below the bridge. The river is lined with trees that hang over the water. Three figures are visible on the bridge. White Mills is on the Nolin River. Published by Hatfield Bros. & Owsley. Publisher's number 62893.

Blanche Preston Jones, descendant of Lady Elizabeth Calvert, plays Appalachian dulcimer alongside young boy and young girl in bonnet, who plays concertina. This performance takes place next to log cabin [probably the Traipsin' Woman Cabin near the Mayo Trail, Boyd County, Kentucky]. Their period dress indicates that they are participants in the annual American Folk Song Festival.

A cross over issue of the Louisville fanzine commonly known as the Burt, from the previous incarnation, Hard Times. Includes record reviews, live show reviews, horoscope and other commentary. Please be advised that this magazine may contain images, language, and themes that may be offensive to some viewers. The University of Louisville does not endorse the content of these items. However, they present an aspect of the cultural record which we deem worthy of preserving and presenting.

The Louisville Leader was an African-American newspaper published from 1917 to 1950 by I. Willis Cole in Louisville, Kentucky. This issue is twelve pages long. There is a tear down the center of each page of this issue and there are various portions missing along these tears.