Currey Seminar

Emory's printed materials (books, pamphlets, journals, newspapers, etc.) are cataloged in Library Search. This is a common practice, and most libraries contribute their records to larger consortium catalogs, like WorldCat.

We call the in-depth description of an item in Library Search its catalog record.

A catalog record is to a printed item as a finding aid is to a manuscript collection. In special collections libraries, catalog records give more information than just the call number.

• Basic item information
  • Title
  • Author
  • Publisher
  • Year and place of publication
• Location information
  • Holding library
  • Call number
  • Collection
• Physical description
  • Size
  • Number of pages

• Edition date: Year of publication. One work may have many editions that can change it significantly.
• Provenance: Where did the item come from? Was it owned by someone noteworthy that might impact how and why the item was kept or changed over time?
• Unique characteristics: Marginalia, inscriptions, printer's mistakes, damage, etc.
• Locations: Which of Emory's many libraries holds this item? If looking in WorldCat, what other libraries have an item I want that Emory does not?