A quick overview on the adoption of museum documentation standards in the Netherlands (1950-2020). Policy perspective. Presented at the CIDOC 2017 conference in Tbilisi, Georgia.

1. Documentary standards in the
digital environment
Dutch museums: 50 year trajectory
Trilce Navarrete
Erasmus University Ro=erdam @TrilceNavarrete

2. Today • My context
– Theory = Art History, IS, Cultural Economics
– Becoming Digital = process to renew oneself
– Stats = EGMUS, Eurostat, Enumerate
• The adopMon of standards NL
– The Start / Wide AdopMon / New FronMers
– Stages, dynamics, finances
– Big picture ALWAYS in sight
• One thought to take home
Trilce Navarrete : Evolving standards

3. The start
• Once upon a Mme … in the Netherlands …
– 1950s post was period of reconstrucMon.
– Museums realized importance of documentaMon
• To register and account for (lost) objects
• To increase efficiency of collecMon management
• CIDOC was founded
– White Book was published with general acquisiMon
process.
– Iconclass index system started
Trilce Navarrete : Evolving standards
ObjectID started in 1997

4. The start
• Bo=om up formaMon of standards
– 1969 Start
• Sea Water Fishing Museum library received grant to explore
the use of computers for the registraMon of collecMons.
– InternaMonal efforts served to advocate
• ICOM conference + ICOM magazine about computers 1967
– 1974 first naMonal standards were developed
• Build from internaMonal standards
• SecMon on registraMon and documentaMon
• Stressed use of unified terminology
Trilce Navarrete : Evolving standards

5. The start
• Joint efforts to advance
– 1977 AssociaMon formed to coordinate, advise and
advance documentaMon.
• Development of standards for images, objects / by topic
• Advocated for funding (adopMon of computers, training)
• Developed socware for museums
• First remote access to joint collecMons
– First stats:
• RegistraMon of collecMons= 1,600 objects
• Museums using standard card= 22 (25 cards)
Trilce Navarrete : Evolving standards
Standards not yet adopted

6. Wide adopMon
• All museums to get a computer
– Government supported adopMon and training
– 1986 Socware developed for (basic) registraMon,
books and references, natural history
– Museums with computers: 25 in 1987 and 122 in 1990
– Slow adopMon for registraMon
• Seen as impoverishment of paper documentaMon records
– SMll, work conMnued as usual
• Kept work / organizaMonal structure
• InformaMon distribuMon remained closed
Trilce Navarrete : Evolving standards
Making of silos
AdopMon of standards

7. Wide adopMon
• Resources remained scarce
– Imaging was too expensive
– DigiMzaMon project were limited in scope
– Museums with website: 5 in 1995 and 670 in 2002
– The Internet provided potenMal … but
• The network was not yet strong
• Few images were available for online publicaMon
• The use of the Internet for communicaMon would
emerge later….
Trilce Navarrete : Evolving standards
More stats
Dublin Core 1995

8. New fronMers
• The web makes sense
– 2000s …
– The isolated, task oriented, data input hid the goal
of it all
• to improve access and enhance museum work
• The Internet reminded everybody of the reachable joys
– Further coordinaMon was needed
• NaMonal efforts divided tasks / experMse
• New resources were (iniMally) made available
Trilce Navarrete : Evolving standards

9. New fronMers
• Does it make sense … ?
– 2010s…
– Top down funding, policy, approach
– Isolated soluMons
• (large) Research (project) base
• Appears disconnected from museum reality
– SemanMc epistemology to documentaMon
• LOD …
Trilce Navarrete : Evolving standards

10. New fronMers
• Back to the basics
– 2020s…
– Global pressing issues shic focus of work
• PreservaMon of collecMons
• To deliver a social return (sustainable development
goals 11.4)
– SoluMons require long-term approach
• Standards for definiMons, relaMons, processes
Trilce Navarrete : Evolving standards

11. Trilce Navarrete : Evolving standards
1950
Post war reconstrucMon
First sca=ered efforts
1977 - 1985
NaMonal advocacy associaMon
ConMnuous effort
Development of standards
Slow adopMon of computers
1986 - 1995
NaMonal policies
Wide adopMon
First exploraMons online
Slow adopMon of standards
1996 - 2005
The web makes sense
Remote and wider access
The start
Wide adopMon
New fronMers
2006 - 2010
Interoperability …
(what is that …?)
2020 -
Back to basics
Mixed RealiMes
SemanMc

12. Take home
• Join the digital
– Using (exisMng) standards allows:
• Reuse past effort
• HarmonizaMon / interoperability / benchmarking
Thank you !
Trilce Navarrete : Evolving standards