Documenting Your Collections
Info-Muse Network Documentation Guide

Previous page Table of contents Next page

Begin Date (Dating)

Definition:

Observations:

1. N.B.: This field is used only when the begin date is known.
2. This field is used in conjunction with the End Date field.
3. If only one date is known, enter the information in the End Date field and leave the Begin Date field blank.
   Example

   Record for a Peruvian metal plate from 200 AD

   	Object Name	plate
   	Material	metal
   	Culture	Peruvian
   	Begin Date
   	End Date	0200

4. If a range of dates is known, enter the oldest date in the Begin Date field and the most recent date in the End Date field.
   Example

   Research showed that a pot may have been made between 850 and 725 B.C.

   	Object Name	pot
   	Begin Date	-0850
   	End Date	-0725

Entry rules:

1. Enter the begin date in the form YYYY (Y for "year").
   Example

   	Begin Date	1025

2. If the begin date has fewer than four digits, you may add zeros to simplify the production of lists.
   Example

   	Begin Date	0050

3. If the month and day on which production began are known, enter the information in the form YYYY dash MM dash DD, in numbers only (Y for "Year," M for "Month" and D for "Day").
   Example

   	Begin Date	1951-12-22

4. Use the abbreviation "c" (for circa) when the object may have been produced within a period of five years before or five years after the date indicated. Enter the date followed by a space and "c".
   Example

   	Begin Date	1340 c

5. Use the abbreviation "L" (for "later than") if the object could have been produced no earlier than the date shown. Enter the date followed by a space and "L".
   Example

   	Begin Date	0200 L

6. If you are unsure whether your information is correct, include a space and a question mark after the date.
   Example

   	Begin Date	0800 ?

7. BC dates should be preceded by a minus sign "-".
   Example

   	Begin Date	-2500

8. To delimit a century or part of a century, you may use the Begin Date and End Date fields as follows:¹
   Example 1

   An object produced in the 10th century

   	Begin Date	0900 L
   	End Date	0999 P

   Example 2

   An object produced in the early 10th century

   	Begin Date	0900 L
   	End Date	0925 P

   Example 3

   An object produced in the mid-10th century

   	Begin Date	0925 L
   	End Date	0975 P

   Example 4

   An object produced in the late 10th century

   	Begin Date	0975 L
   	End Date	0999 P

   Example 5

   An object produced in the 1530s

   	Begin Date	1530 L
   	End Date	1539 P

9. This field may not contain more than one entry.