May I add a word as a former member of the Description Commission, and
therefore one of the authors of ISAD(G)? - in fact the diagram is
specifically my work and I got them to put it in in order to demonstrate the
difference in kind between the different sorts of levels. You are right: one
must not simply take the labels fonds, series, file as just descending
order. Each has a characteristic and can be subdivided. MAD2 and MAD3 has a
chapter dealing with how to differentiate between fonds (=group, collection)
and series (=class). However of course people make mistakes and usually it
doesn't matter all that much.
On another point, it is not necessary to have all the levels in if they are
not applicable. Thus you can have files depending directly from fonds. MAD
advises that you can have artificial series if the circumstances suggest it,
because one reason for having these levels is to make the whole mass more
manageable. Therefore you can decide to set up manufactured series if
otherwise you would have to deal with a whole mass undifferentiated items -
but it is not necessary to do so. In Germany (at least in government
archives) it is customary to ignore the series level because they deal
mainly in files. In Australia, as we all know, series are the most important
level for management. We can live with all these differences provided we
understand the definitions.
Michael Cook
LUCAS
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