This document provides an overview of Encoded Archival Description (EAD), which is an XML standard for encoding archival finding aids. It discusses the basics of EAD, including what EAD is, its relationship to DACS and MARC standards, and common tags used in EAD finding aids such as <eadheader>, <archdesc>, and <dsc>. It also covers how to create an EAD finding aid using various tools and how to transform and display EAD records through XSLT stylesheets and other methods. The future of EAD is also briefly discussed, including the ongoing revision process.

1. Pratt Institute SLIS
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2. Outline
I. The Basics
II. A Finding Aid
III. Implementation
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3. I. The Basics
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4. I. Basics
What is EAD?
XML standard for encoding finding aids
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5. I. Basics - What is EAD?
XML standard for encoding finding aids
XML (eXtensible Markup Language):
a set of rules for structuring data via markup
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6. I. Basics - What is EAD?
XML standard for encoding finding aids
Elements and attributes defined by a
Document Type Definition (DTD) or a
Schema
<bioghist> <bionote>
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7. I. Basics - What is EAD?
XML standard for encoding finding aids
Defined set of containers for descriptive data
EAD : DACS = MARC : AACR2
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8. I. Basics - What is EAD?
XML standard for encoding finding aids
A description of records that gives the
repository physical and intellectual control over
the materials and that assists users to gain
access to and understand the materials (SAA)
Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS)
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9. I. Basics
What is EAD?
XML standard for encoding finding aids
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10. I. Basics
What is EAD?
EAD encoding is not a substitute for
sound archival description!
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11. I. Basics
A Brief Aside: DACS
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
“rules to ensure the creation of
consistent, appropriate, and self-
explanatory descriptions of archival
material.”
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12. I. Basics
A Brief Aside: DACS
“DACS defines twenty-five elements that
are useful in creating systems for
describing archival materials.”
“Not all of the DACS elements are
required in every archival description.”
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13. I. Basics
A Brief Aside: DACS
3.1 Scope and Content Element
“This element provides information
about the nature of the materials and
activities reflected in the unit being
described to enable users to judge its
potential relevance. …”
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14. I. Basics
A Brief Aside: DACS
DACS revision underway
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15. II. A Finding Aid
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16. II. Finding Aid
EAD Finding Aid Structure
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE ead SYSTEM "ead.dtd">
or
<ead xsi:schemaLocation="urn:isbn:1-931666-22-9
http://www.loc.gov/ead/ead.xsd">
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17. II. Finding Aid
EAD Finding Aid Structure
<ead>
<eadheader>Information about repository and
finding aid</eadheader>
<archdesc>Description of archival
materials</archdesc>
</ead>
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18. II. Finding Aid
Common Tags <eadheader>
• Finding aid author
<filedesc><titlestmt>
<author>Processed by Stanislav Pejša.</author>
</titlestmt></filedesc>
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19. II. Finding Aid
Common Tags <archdesc>
• Minimum required description – “high-level did”
<did>
<origination>Mueller, Justin J.</origination>
<unittitle>Justin J. Mueller Collection</unittitle>
<unitdate>undated, 1890-2005</unitdate>
<abstract>[short descriptive text]</abstract>
[…]
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20. II. Finding Aid
Common Tags <archdesc>
• Minimum required description – “high-level did”
<did>
[…]
<langmaterial>In German and English</langmaterial>
<physdesc>1 linear foot</physdesc>
<unitid>AR 10254</unitid>
<repository>Leo Baeck Institute</repository>
<physloc>V 11/2</physloc>
</did>
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21. II. Finding Aid
Common Tags <archdesc>
• Biographical information
<bioghist><p>Joseph Roth was one of the most prominent
Austrian writers of the first half of the 20th
century.</p></bioghist>
• Controlled vocabulary
<geogname encodinganalog="651$a" source="lcsh"
authfilenumber="n 79040121">Austria</geogname>
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22. II. Finding Aid
Common Tags <archdesc>
• Description of Subordinate Components
<dsc>
<c01 level="series">
<c02>Folder 1
<c03>Item 1</c03>
<c03>Item 2</c03>
</c02>
<c02>Folder 2</c02>
</c01>
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23. II. Finding Aid
Common Tags <archdesc>
• Description of Subordinate Components
A Component <c> provides information about the content,
context, and extent of a subordinate body of materials.
Each <c> element identifies an intellectually logical section
of the described materials. The physical filing
separations between components do not always
coincide with the intellectual separations.
From EAD Tag library <http://www.loc.gov/ead/tglib/elements/c.html>
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24. II. Finding Aid
Common Tags <archdesc>
• Description of Subordinate Components
<dsc>
<c01 level="series">
<did>
<unittitle id="serII">Series II: Publications</unittitle>
<unitdate normal="1985/1996">1985-1996</unitdate>
</did>
<c02>Subordinate intellectual parts, e.g. folders</c02>
</c01>
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25. II. Finding Aid
Common Tags <archdesc>
• Description of Subordinate Components
<c02>
<did>
<container type="box">2</container>
<container type="folder">1</container>
<unittitle>Articles</unittitle>
<unitdate>1985-1994</unitdate>
</did>
</c02>
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26. II. Finding Aid
Common Tags <archdesc>
• Description of Subordinate Components
<c02>
<did>
<container type="box">OS 145</container>
<container type="folder">1</container>
<unittitle>Newspaper foldout</unittitle>
<unitdate>1996</unitdate>
</did>
</c02>
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27. II. Finding Aid
Common Tags – Human Readable?
<dimensions>
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28. II. Finding Aid
Common Tags – Human Readable?
<dimensions>
A subelement of <physdesc> for information
about the size of the materials being
described; usually includes numerical data.
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29. II. Finding Aid
Common Tags – Human Readable?
<famname>
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30. II. Finding Aid
Common Tags – Human Readable?
<famname>
The proper noun designation for a group of
persons closely related by blood or persons
who form a household. Includes single
families and family groups, e.g., Patience
Parker Family and Parker Family. 30

31. II. Finding Aid
EAD Finding Aid
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32. III. Implementation
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33. III. Implementation:
Creating EAD
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34. III. Implementation: Creating EAD
Archivists’ Toolkit Archon
ArchivesSpace
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35. III. Implementation: Creating EAD
ICA-AtoM
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36. III. Implementation: Creating EAD
oXygen
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37. III. Implementation: Creating EAD
NoteTab Dreamweaver
EADitor Note Pad
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38. III. Implementation: Creating EAD
PASCL spreadsheet
“the spreadsheet from heaven”
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39. III. Implementation: Creating EAD
My Workflow
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40. III. Implementation:
Using EAD
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41. III. Implementation: Using EAD
Now What?
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42. III. Implementation: Using EAD
XSLT
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43. III. Implementation: Using EAD
XSLT
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44. III. Implementation: Using EAD
EAD to HTML
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45. III. Implementation: Using EAD
EAD to HTML with DC
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46. III. Implementation: Using EAD
EAD to PDF
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47. III. Implementation: Using EAD
EAD to MARC
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48. III. Implementation: Using EAD
Other Uses
• Integration with other standards (e.g. EAC-CPF)
• Open Archives Initiative – Protocol for Metadata
Harvesting (OAI-PMH)
• EAD consortia
• Metadata for digitized collections
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49. III. Implementation: Using EAD
Other Uses
• Flexible search and display
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50. III. Implementation: Using EAD
The Future of EAD
(pre) Alpha release of EAD revision, August 2012
• Simplify links
• Reduce mixed content
• Add, deprecate, and delete elements
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51. III. Implementation: Using EAD
The Future of EAD
• Revision is schema-based -- goodbye, DTD
• LC stylesheet: dtd2schema.xsl
• “Attribute validation errors indicate that the
attribute value does not conform to the ruling
ISO standard”
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52. III. Implementation: Using EAD
The Future of EAD
• Beta release of schema, documentation, and
migration tools, January 15, 2013
• New version of EAD released with tag library and
migration tools, July 1, 2013
slideshare.net/mikerush/ead-revision-progress-report-20120808
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53. III. Implementation: Using EAD
Relax!
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54. IV. Exercises
Questions?
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55. Resources
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56. III. Implementation: Creating EAD
EAD Tag Library
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57. III. Implementation: Creating EAD
SAA Standards Portal
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58. Resources
EAD Tools
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59. Resources
Tinker!
• Download the free trial of oXygen XML editor,
the schema, an EAD finding aid, and a stylesheet.
• Try some basic actions: add a folder, change a
controlled vocabulary term, remove a series.
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60. Thank you!
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