Bibliographic Standards Committee

DCRM(G): Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Materials (Graphics)

DCRM(G) draft texts

Version: 4.2 20091124

Current status

The editorial team is currently seeking comments and input on Version 4.2 of DCRM(G). The DCRM(G) wiki is being used to document ongoing progress.

History and background

Graphic Materials: Rules for Describing Original Items and Historical Collections was compiled by Elisabeth Betz Parker in 1982 to provide guidelines for cataloging a wide variety of visual materials from photographic prints, negatives, and albums to posters, cartoons, popular and fine prints, and architectural drawings. These rules are a national standard supplement to Chapter 8 of Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules, Second Edition (AACR2), which focuses on modern, published audiovisual materials.

In 2008, the RBMS Bibliographic Standards Committee accepted a proposal to develop a second edition of Graphic Materials as part of the Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Materials (DCRM) suite. The Library of Congress Cataloging Policy and Support Office (CPSO) expressed support of this change, and the new manual will be known as Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Materials (Graphics), or DCRM(G).

Changes from Graphic Materials

DCRM(G) will cover "born digital" images such as digital photographs and CAD drawings.

Users will be referred to Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS) for description of archival collections. DCRM(G) will continue to cover collections assembled by the repository for cataloging purposes.

DCRM(G) editorial team