[DCRM-L] [External] Best practice for copy specific notes

[Moody, Honor M.]

I believe the Harvard best practices are accessible without signing in, Best Practice for MARC 21 Fields Describing Local Information<https://harvardwiki.atlassian.net/wiki/x/lxV_Aw>, but lmk if that’s not the case!

Honor


Honor Moody
Metadata Creation Manager
Harvard Library Information and Technical Services

honor_moody at harvard.edu<mailto:honor_moody at harvard.edu>

HARVARD LIBRARY
Champions of Curiosity
library.harvard.edu

Remote/onsite schedule:
Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays: onsite
Fridays: work from home

From: DCRM-L <dcrm-l-bounces at lib.byu.edu> On Behalf Of Lewis, Dylan via DCRM-L
Sent: Thursday, April 2, 2026 4:08 PM
To: dcrm-l at lib.byu.edu
Cc: Lewis, Dylan <dylan.lewis at emory.edu>
Subject: Re: [DCRM-L] [External] Best practice for copy specific notes

Hi Daniela,

My practice is similar to yours!

I use a 541 with first indicator of 0 to record the provenance related to the item's arrival at the library (gift, purchase, donation, etc.). This gets a subfield 5.
Example: 541 0_ |c Purchase, |a Peter Harrington |d 2024 |5 GEU

I use a 561 with first indicator of 0 to discuss an item's previous ownership or custodial history. This also gets a subfield 5.
Example: 561 0_ |a periodicals originally collected by John Moore as part of his Bram Stoker collection |5 GEU

I use a 563 to describe bindings. This also gets a subfield 5.
Example: 563 __ |a 20th century Sangorski & Sutcliffe binding with blue morocco and gold tooling of the Plantagenet leopard, Tudor rose, and fleurs-de-lys along the spine |5 GEU

I record annotations, inscriptions, and other copy-specific things of a similar nature in a 590.

I hope this is helpful information!
Dylan

❡ Dylan Lewis (he/him<https://pronouns.org/he-him>)
Rare Book Librarian
Andrew W. Mellon Junior Fellow in Critical Bibliography
Stuart A. Rose Manuscripts, Archives, and Rare Book Library
Emory University
Libraries.emory.edu/rose<http://Libraries.emory.edu/rose>
https://libraries.emory.edu/contact/staff-directory/dylan-lewis

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________________________________
From: DCRM-L <dcrm-l-bounces at lib.byu.edu<mailto:dcrm-l-bounces at lib.byu.edu>> on behalf of Daniela Rovida via DCRM-L <dcrm-l at lib.byu.edu<mailto:dcrm-l at lib.byu.edu>>
Sent: Thursday, April 2, 2026 3:25 PM
To: dcrm-l at lib.byu.edu<mailto:dcrm-l at lib.byu.edu> <dcrm-l at lib.byu.edu<mailto:dcrm-l at lib.byu.edu>>
Cc: Daniela Rovida <drovida at nd.edu<mailto:drovida at nd.edu>>
Subject: [External] [DCRM-L] Best practice for copy specific notes

Good afternoon,

We are currently trying to establish a more consistent local practice for recording copy-specific and local notes for rare books, particularly with regard to binding and provenance.

At present, we record provenance information in field 561 with subfield 5. Binding information and other copy-specific details, such as annotations in the margins, are included in a local note that does not display in the OCLC record. Previously, we have also used field 563 with subfield 5 to describe bindings.
I would be very interested to learn which fields your institution uses for these purposes and if you have any recommendations.

Thank you very much for your assistance,
Daniela

--
Daniela Rovida
Rare Books Cataloging and Metadata Librarian,
Hesburgh Libraries
Faculty Affiliate, Center for Italian Studies

University of Notre Dame
404 Hesburgh Library
Notre Dame, IN 46556-5629
o: 574-631-1954
e: drovida at nd.edu<mailto:toleary2 at nd.edu>

[https://docs.google.com/uc?export=download&id=1eLUXKKJMijoIFzQtpJutmM1uLHON9ZDt&revid=0B-gl36FdlSuTV2ZPM1NBek5HamNiOWN1UllhT3d2VWtCU3hjPQ]
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