My understanding of a primary source, in regards to a written document, is that if the content is the same as the original source then that information is still considered primary. We are not talking about copyright but secondary vs. primary. If it is a direct quote and not a paraphrase or something like that then it is primary. Given that the original source experienced the event. Now when talking about a photo of a object. I would say that this is primary. But if some modification is made to the original image, then it is no longer primary. An exact image of the object to me would be primary and a image that is modified in some way say an artists rendering then it would be secondary. However, I am wondering can the terms primary and secondary source be used if we are not talking about oral communication? I wonder if these terms solely apply to words not 3-d objects. Just some thoughts. Steven Stewart ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).