Glossary
This glossary is an A - Z of terms used in the online catalogue.
It is not a glossary of subject terms e.g. 'philately', but of terms which will help you understand the catalogue itself.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
A
AccessConditions
This tells you what conditions govern access to an item in the collections. For example it may be that the item must be viewed on microfilm.
Sometimes certain preservation rules apply which govern access to material in the collections. This ensures that the material will remain accessible and in good condition.
The most common example of this is where a surrogate copy e.g. microfilm is used in order to protect the original document from repeated handling. In such cases the surrogate is usually available in the Search Room.
In other cases it might be necessary to view items under special supervision. This means some items are available by appointment only, e.g. philatelic material.
AccessStatus
This tells you whether or not POST class material (archive) is available to view in our public search room.
As a general rule, POST class material (archive) is available for research subject to access conditions - unless the entry in the catalogue reads 'Not Yet Opened'. In this instance it is covered by the Freedom of Information Act and is not yet available on demand.
Please note that museum material may be viewed by appointment only.
AccNo
This is a unique identifying number given to museum material.
C
Contextual Detail
This provides information on how a particular item relates to other material held in the archive.
Archive records are grouped together in POST classes according to their type and origin. Therefore the contextual detail will tell you which POST class an archive record belongs to. It is likely that material on a particular topic will be found in the same POST class.
Within individual POST classes, this contextual detail can also show how material is broken down into series and sub-series of records. Our online catalogue displays the heading 'contextual detail' even when none is available. Therefore this may appear blank on some records.
As an example, POST 9/112: District Surveyor's Monthly Accounts, is shown as being part of a series of records titled 'District Surveyors' monthly accounts of provincial riding work payments to contractors, England and Wales'.
Copyright
This identifies the owner of copyright of the archive item or object being described. This helps to identify any restrictions on the use or reproduction of the archive item or object.
D
Date
This shows the creation dates of the item. It is not possible to list search results in date order.
Different date formats are used for the POST class (archive) material, and the museum material. This is because archive material is Public Record, and museum material is not Public Record.
The date format for POST class material is given Year/Month/Day, in accordance with standards laid down by The National Archives. Unfortunately this option is not read by the cataloguing software we use at the BPMA, and therefore it is not possible to sort search results by date. Museum collections do not have to comply with this archive standard, and so follow the more common Day/Month/Year format. We have arranged with our software provider to provide a facility to order search results by date with a future update to our system.
Description
This is used to provide a more detailed description of the material in question than can be offered by the title field, e.g.,
| FindingNo | POST 22/8 |
| Title | Report of the Writing Duties Committee |
| Description | Report of the Writing Duties Committee concerning the number of writing duties staff at Postmaster Surveyors offices, the allocation of work and the possible introduction of labour saving expedients. |
Not every catalogue record requires this additional description. as the title is clear enoough.
Dimensions
This field gives the measurements of an object. The form of measurement will be given, e.g., 'mm' for millimetres.
E
Extent
This indicates the amount of material that will be produced in the Search Room when ordering a record (e.g., POST 22/8). This may range from '1 file' or '1 volume' to '28 files'. (Note that one record may consist of more than one file - it may be 3 files tied together for example).
It is not possible to request records to view as a whole series. Normally no more than six 'files' can be requested at one time, and only one file may be viewed at a time. The extent field is a good guide as to what to expect.
F
FindingNo
This is the number that should be used when ordering an item from the archive. It consists of the prefix 'POST' followed by a series of numbers, e.g., 'POST 56/1'.
If this number includes the phrase 'series' or 'sub-series', it is describing a group of material, rather than an individual item. Only individual items may be ordered in the public search room.
| POST 58 Series: Records Staff nomination and appointment | This signifies a whole class of records which result from the same activity / process - in this case staff nomination and appointment. This FindingNo cannot be used to order material. |
| POST 58 Sub-series: Registers of appointments | This signifies a group of related records within a series - in this case, Registers of appointments for various positions in the Post Office. This FindingNo cannot be used to order material. |
| POST 58/34: Register of appointment, 1799 - 1810 | This is a single volume which can be produced in the Search Room. This FindingNo can be used to order individual items in the search room. |
Freedom of Information
Material which is under 30 years old in the Royal Mail Archive is covered by the Freedom of Information Act. It may be possible for you to see this material under the terms of the Act.
Please contact us in writing (by post, fax or email) in the first instance, detailing what you wish to see. Freedom of Information requests are processed by Royal Mail Group plc, and your request will be passed to them to answer within the statutory framework.
File
This is likely to represent one folder or volume, e.g. a file of correspondence or a volume of minutes.
I
ISAD(g)
The International Standard for Archival Description (General) is the internationally recognised standard for describing archives.
Item
This is the term usually used to describe individual museum objects, and can also refer to archive material of a non-standard type.
L
Language
This is used to indicate the language in which material is written, e.g., English, Welsh, French.
Level
This provides an indication of the level of description at which you are looking. For example 'series' indicates that a range of records is being described rather than an individual record. This only applies to archival records.
See also
LegalStatus
This indicates whether or not the item being described is Public or Non-Public Record.
P
Printer Friendly Version
Clicking on this link creates a version of the page you are viewing which will print more clearly. This feature works in most web browsers.
Previous Numbers
This field is used to indicate any former references which may have been used to access records.
These might refer to when the records were in current use (e.g., file registry numbers), or older cataloguing references.
R
RefNo
This is a number provided for administrative purposes in order to group records together in a hierarchy. It should not be used to order items in the search room.
RefNo is the code that our cataloguing software, uses to group archival material together, and is a reference beginning with 'P' followed by a number, e.g., 'P 56/01/01'. This number is purely administrative and may change.
The constant number by which an item should be ordered is the FindingNo.
RelatedMaterial
This field gives an indication of where other material that relates to this record might be held. This may be elsewhere within our archive, or at another institution.
Repository
This field indicates the institution which holds the material indicated in a catalogue record. Material held by the BPMA will be shown as either 'GB 813 The Royal Mail Archive, Freeling House' (for archive records) or as 'LDPHT The British Postal Museum & Archive, Freeling House/BPMS (for museum objects). We include other repositories on our catalogue because they are relevant to the material which we hold. You will need to contact each institution direct in order to view their material. The three other repositories which feature in the catalogue are:
GB2060 Alliance & Leicester Group Archives
Girobank plc Paperstore
Dunnings Bridge Road
Bootle
L30 6UT
England
Archivist: Mr N Hardman
GB 1814 BT Group Archives
Third Floor
Holborn Telephone Exchange
268 - 270 High Holborn
London
WC1V 7EE
Tel: (+44) 020 7440 4220
Fax: (+44) 020 7242 1967
Email: archives@bt.com
Website: http://www.btplc.com/archives
GB 1971 British Library, The National Sound Archive
96 Euston Road
London
NW1 2DB
Tel: (+44) 020 7412 7406
Fax: (+44) 020 7412 7441
Email: NSA-library@bl.uk
Website: http://www.bl.uk/
ReproductionConditions
This field indicates the conditions under which copies may be made of material.
Rules
This field lists the standards that have been used in compiling the description of an archive or object.
The BPMA always seeks to catalogue material to the highest standards, and to follow national and international guidance within the heritage professions.
Public Record material is catalogued in accordance with the requirements of The National Archives and to the International Standard for Archival Description (General) standards for archive description. We also comply with the National Council on Archives rules for the construction of personal, place and corporate names, and with international name authority compilation standards, although we sometimes have to make special arrangements where one or more of the standards contradict each other.
Objects are catalogued in accordance with the recognised standard produced by the MDA (Museum Documentation Association), SPECTRUM.
Rules and standards are important because they promote accessibility through encouraging common forms of description, and allow for the wider exchange of cataloguing data between institutions. For example we are able to display catalogues from BT Group Archives, and Alliance & Leicester Group Archives through our online catalogue.
S
Series
This term indicates a whole class of related archive records, e.g. 'POST 1: Treasury Records', or 'POST 58: Records relating to staff nomination and appointment'. The term 'series' is taken from the international archive standard ISAD(g).
Sub-series
This indicates a group of related records within a series of records, e.g., 'POST 38 Sub-series: Appointment Minutes', or 'POST 64 Sub-series: Post Office Ambulance Corps Minutes'. This term is taken from the international standard ISAD(g).
T
Title
This field gives the title of the material being described, e.g., 'Convictions and Dismissals of Post Office Employees, 1913 - 1916' (POST 120/159).
It is often the same as a title written on the item itself, for example with magazines, or registered files. However our archivists may have to create descriptive titles if none were given by the person who created the record.