LEE BARKER WALTON 57 



ACCESSION CATALOGUE 



In this catalogue, all material received or collected at 

 a particular time from a particular source, (an accession), 

 is placed under a single accession number. Thus the 

 catalogue will contain a record of each group of specimens 

 coming into the possession of the different departments in 

 the museums, and by means of a series of cross references, 

 consisting of tabs arranged as indicated in the accompany- 

 ing illustration, it will be possible to ascertain at any 

 period the data concerning the accessions acquired by each 

 department, whether they have been obtained by pur- 

 chase, gift, exchange, through museum collectors, or in 

 trust, and if by purchase, their cost, as well as the particu- 

 lar fund made use of in connection with their acquisition. 



The disposition of each item on the card should cor- 

 respond to its relative importance. In the following 

 diagram a convenient arrangement is suggested. 



Classification by Departments. — A classification by 

 departments can be conveniently maintained by having 

 tabs arranged on the cards in as many different positions 

 as there are departments. Thus with ^ inch tabs, eight 

 departments may be tabulated. 



Accession number. — This should occupy a prominent 

 place, preferably the upper left hand corner, and in order 

 that it may be easily noted, should be written in a large 

 plain figure with black or red ink.- The numbers should 

 be serially arranged in accordance with the date of arrival 

 of the accession, and at intervals of one hundred cards, a 

 numbered guide card of a particular color {e. g. dark 

 Hue) may be inserted. Where no previous catalogue of 

 this nature has been kept, it may be well to have new 

 accessions commence with a number sufficiently large 



While it is equally the same whether one specimen or one million specimens are 

 received, the terms 'particular time' and 'particular place' are necessarily subject to 

 considerable latitude in their interpretation. If certain systems of cross references 

 are used it may be necessary to place a collection under several different accession 

 numbers. For example, if cards of various colors represent geographical distribution 

 {e. g. Nearctic, etc.), it would be necessary to use as many accession cards as there 

 were regions represented in the particular collection. 



It is perhaps unnecessary to remark that in records of this nature india ink 

 should always be employed and cards of the best quality be used. Inks made of 

 aniline colors will fade within a few years. 



