Cataloging: Special Collections Physical Processing

Purpose: To provide guidelines on the physical processing of materials for Rare Books and Special Collections

Special Collections

  1. ALL dust jackets are left on the books for Special Collections.
  2. Two call number labels are printed for each book. Affix one to the cover and one to the dust jacket in the appropriate location.
  3. The barcode is affixed to the dust jacket.
  4. If the book is a circulating copy (e.g. copy 2), the dust jacket gets covered in a mylar wrapper.
  5. A Special Collections bookplate, if included, is affixed to the inside front cover of the book.

Rare Books

  1. NOTHING is affixed to the book itself.
  2. ALL dust jackets are left on the books for Rare Books.
  3. The spine labels and barcode are put on a special, acid-free bookmark and inserted, between pages, into the top of the book.
  4. A regular Special Collections bookplate is also inserted into the top of the book (unless a special plate–Vickery, Taylor, etc.–is specified) which will then be affixed to the bookmark in Special Collections.