Metadata Standards

The Bettess Collection digital catalogue adheres to internationally recognised standards for archival description and metadata, ensuring long-term preservation, discoverability, and interoperability with other heritage collections.

Dublin Core Metadata Element Set (DCMES)

ISO 15836 / ANSI/NISO Z39.85

Dublin Core provides the foundational metadata framework for each catalogue record. Every item is described using the 15 core Dublin Core elements including Title, Creator, Date, Format, Identifier, Subject, Publisher, Source, Language, Coverage, and Rights.

Dublin Core is the most widely adopted metadata standard in the cultural heritage sector, enabling cross-collection search and resource sharing through protocols such as OAI-PMH.

ISAD(G) — General International Standard Archival Description

International Council on Archives (ICA), 2nd Edition, 2000

The collection is structured according to the ISAD(G) multi-level description model:

Fonds: F. Bettess Collection (FBC)
Series: Organised by material category (Books, Photographs, Manuscripts, Maps, etc.)
Item: Individual catalogue entries identified by Bettess Collection (BC) number

ISAD(G) ensures that the hierarchical relationship between the collection as a whole and its constituent parts is preserved and clearly communicated.

Schema.org Structured Data

ArchiveComponent / ArchiveOrganization vocabularies

Each item page includes Schema.org JSON-LD structured data using the ArchiveComponent type. This enables search engines to understand and surface the collection in relevant searches, improving discoverability for researchers and the public.

WCAG 2.1 Level AA

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines

The website is designed to meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA accessibility standards, including sufficient colour contrast, keyboard navigation, screen reader support, and responsive design for all device sizes.