<Previous page Table of Contents Next page>
Guidelines for cataloguing images using the Picture Queensland web form
Guidelines also available as Word document [new window 
363 kb].
9. Description
Field label: DESCRIPTION
Definition: An account of the content of the resource.
Purpose: This element allows searching based on words and phrases describing the resource. It is the least precise of all the search points and will often be used by users with vague notions of what they are looking for. It is used to display to the searcher a summary of the resource content. It is very useful for allowing non-textual resources to be discovered using words or phrases and allows the user to determine if this is what they want.
Obligation: Optional. Highly recommended.
Input guidelines
9.1 This field provides a free-text summary that describes the resource. It is the least precise method of searching, but it can be useful for picking up terms not included in the SUBJECT search. The DESCRIPTION can be used to clearly describe an image and to draw attention to details of interest that are not immediately obvious. It is an important field to engage the interest of the searcher and encourage further exploration of the database.
9.2 The DESCRIPTION field should provide objective information about the resource, not an evaluation or review. This does not imply that the DESCRIPTION should be written in a flat, impersonal style. It is possible and desirable to construct sentences and paragraphs in a manner to create interest without losing objectivity.
9.3 Do not simply repeat the title in this field. Information that is crucial to resource discovery should also be entered in TITLE, PHOTOGRAPHER, SUBJECT, GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION or DATE OF PHOTOGRAPH fields as these are the fields searched in PictureAustralia simple search. ENCompass simple search is a general keyword search.
9.4 If the TITLE provides adequate information about the image and there is nothing more to add for the DESCRIPTION, there is no need to complete the element.
9.5 When a DESCRIPTION has been supplied with the photograph, ie, staff were not responsible for it, and that description will be used in the record, indicate this by including at the end of the description the statement '(Description supplied with photograph.)'
9.6 If a description, or part thereof, has been taken from another source, eg, book, etc., use the statement '(Information taken from: ....)'.
9.7 For information taken from a book, construct the reference in the following format: [Title], [Edition], [Date of publication]. If there is an author, use the format [Author], [Title], [Edition], [Date of Publication]. Use only the initials and surname of a personal author. A personal author is someone who is chiefly responsible for the intellectual content of a work. Do not treat an editor as an author. Separate each element by a comma.
For example:
- (Information taken from: J.C.H. Foley, Timeless isle : an illustrated history of Thursday Island, 1982)
- (Information taken from: R. Longhurst, Gold Coast : Our heritage in focus, 1995)
- (Information taken from: Australian dictionary of biography, v. 5, 1974)
- (Information taken from: The Australian encyclopaedia, 6th ed., v. 3, 1966)
Include the number of a volume within a multi-volume work. Do not include page numbers.
9.8 For information taken from a newspaper use the format [Title], [Date].
For example:
- (Information taken from: The Queenslander, 12 January, 1901)
9.9 For information taken from a website, use the format [Title], [Date created or revised], [retrieved (date) from <URL>].
For example:
- (Information taken from: Internet movie database, 2003, retrieved 9 January 2003, from <http://us.imdb.com>)
Use angle brackets (<>) to enclose the URL so that any other punctuation, letters, etc, are not misconstrued as part of the address.
9.10 Provide a brief outline of the content of the resource. It should supply enough information for a user to decide if the item is relevant. Generally, try to limit the length to approximately six sentences, but include more if relevant.
For example:
- an image of the sugar cane being loaded at the South Isis Mill would have a DESCRIPTION Horse drawn wagons of sugar cane being loaded onto rail trucks at South Isis Mill, ca. 1900.
- an image of the first General Post Office in Brisbane and a neighbouring building would have a DESCRIPTION The buildings were originally erected as single-storeyed brick buildings, part of the convict establishment, serving as quarters for married soldiers and as a solitary confinement cell (1827-1829). After 1850 the Post Office occupied this site, with the Moreton Bay Savings Bank occupying the right hand section as early as 1862, although the newer building seen here was probably added in 1867. The Post Office remained on this site until 1872.
9.11 Use the description to highlight any significant aspects of the resource. It can be particularly useful for including historical and graphic details of an image that are not obvious. Consider details such as architecture, building materials, wooden residences, costume, fences, clotheslines, etc.
For example:
- Registrar-General's Office erected on the corner of Queen and George Streets, Brisbane 1872-1874. The building was demolished in 1923 to make way for the final stage of the Treasury Building. Some horse-drawn vehicles are illustrated.
- A wooden house with a group of women and children in the foreground dating from 1890-1900. The house is flat on the ground and has a slate roof, bow window, two chimneys, and verandah.
- A low-set wooden house with three women in the foreground. The house has a bull nose roof with wrought iron work on the verandah. It is enclosed with a decorative wooden paling fence with an inverted gate.
- A group of women pose on the steps and verandah of a house, either sitting or standing. They are dressed in long dresses, skirts and blouses, and hats of the Edwardian era. One woman wears a three-quarter length coat. Some carry umbrellas.
Last updated: 4th June 2009
Creatively linking Queenslanders to information, knowledge and each other
