The most definitive list of man-made object terminology is contained in the
Getty's Art and Architecture Thesaurus (a misnomer as it applies to much
more than art and architecture).  The AAT is available in printed and
electronic formats.  It is also part and parcel of at least one automated
collections systems, Multi MIMSY, from WIlloughby.  Some other vendors offer
it as an option.  To function effectively, it needs to be loaded into an
American National Standards Institute (ANSI) formatted thesaurus structure.
Such structures are typically not available on most automated systems.

The AAT subsumes all of Nomenclature and goes far beyond it in terms of
definitions (scope notes) and extensions.  It is also centrally maintained,
something that Nomenclature never was.  Whereas with Nomenclature, almost
every museum that ever used it had to add terms to it and thus fell out of
sync with other museums using it (and therefore negated the concept of using
it as a tool to share data across museums), the AAT has mechanisms for
gathering terms from people and incorporating them into subsequent releases
of the product.

The AAT actually can serve as a cornerstone for exchange of data and
Internet querying in a way that Nomenclature never can.  The Getty has done
an absolutely tremendous job on the AAT (it being the brainchild of Toni
Peterson who recently retired from the AAT) and has made what can truly be
called one of the lasting contributions to the interchange of museum
information.  There is nothing else like it in the world.


Date:    Wed, 12 Mar 1997 00:39:25 -0500
From:    Bruce MacMillan <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: simple name/terminology lists - help?

Here are the specifics:

Chenhall, Robert G. "Nomenclature for Museum Cataloging. A System for
Classifying Man-Made Objects". Nashville, TN: American Association for
State and Local History (AASLH), 1978.


>    Regarding terminology:
>
>    In the 70s a man by the name of Chenall (I think that's how you
>    spell it) created a book of museum nominclature--it was not
>    exhaustive (although that was the goal)  however, it was very
>    good.  I became familiar with it when I worked at the Whatcom
>    Museum in Washington State.  If you like, call Jan Olsen, curator
>    of collection at the Whatcom (360) 676-6981.
>
>    John Handley

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