Series: history, theory and practice

• Main Author: Janzen, Linda M.
• Language: English
• Published: 2009
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/5362

This study examines the concept of the series in archival literature and practice. Although the series is an important element in archival arrangement and description and appraisal, and is central in controversy relating to traditional archival principles, it has never been the subject of analysis per se. This thesis examines the history and theory of series through analysis of English North American archival literature, and its immediate antecedents. It aims to trace the origins and development of the series concept. The study makes various conclusions about the series: Firstly, the series concept has an abstract element, is part of a single fonds and has a single provenance. Secondly, different definitions of series have served different purposes for archivists in the past; archivists need now to develop a concept and defition of series which will serve current goals. Thirdly, the methods and principles respecting the appraisal of series are not clearly defined, and more study is required in this area, as in other areas of appraisal.