Documenting Your Collections
Info-Muse Network Documentation Guide

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Service Begin Date (Origin)

Definition:

Observations:

1. The service begin date corresponds to the date on which the object was used for the first time by the user.
2. This field is used in conjunction with the Service End Date field.
3. If a range of dates is known, enter the oldest date in the Service Begin Date field and the most recent date in the Service End Date field.
   Example

   A radio used from 1951 to 1963

   	Object Name	radio
   	Service Begin Date	1951
   	Service End Date	1963

Entry rules:

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

   	Service Begin Date	1946

2. If the month and day of beginning service are known, enter the date in the form YYYY dash MM dash DD, in numbers only (Y for "year," M for "month," D for "day").
   Example

   	Service Begin Date	1949-12-14

3. Use the abbreviation "c" (for circa) if the object was first used within a ten-year period, i.e. five years before or five years after the date indicated. Enter the year, a space and the small letter "c".
   Example

   	Service Begin Date	1957 c

4. Use the abbreviation "P" (for "prior to") if the object could have been first used no later than the date shown. Enter the date followed by a space and "P".
   Example

   	Service Begin Date	1905 P

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

   	Service Begin Date	1957-03-14 L

6. If you are unsure whether your information is correct, include a space and a question mark after the date.
7. This field may contain multiple entries separated by a semicolon followed by a space. Enter the information starting with the most recent and make each entry correspond to the User field.
   Example

   A locomotive was put into service on May 12, 1926, by the Canadian National Railway Company, and was used by that company until April 5, 1965. The locomotive was brought back into service by United Aircraft of Canada on June 14, 1966 and used until it was permanently retired on September 8, 1988.

   	Object Name	locomotive
   	User	United Aircraft of Canada Ltd; Canadian National Railway Company
   	Service Begin Date	1966-06-14; 1926-05-12
   	Service End Date	1988-09-08; 1965-04-05