Archaeological archiving
Find out more about:
Physical archaeological archives
The physical archive from any archaeological fieldwork must be deposited with the Yorkshire Museum, or an alternative accredited museum within our area.
Deposition will incur a cost which should be estimated at the beginning of any fieldwork and re-calculated during the process.
The selection strategy for the physical archive should be set out in the Written Statement of Investigation (WSI)/project design
Deposition must adhere to:
- the relevant guidance and standards of the collecting museum
- the deposition policy of the collecting museum
The archaeological contractor must discuss the archive with the curators at collecting museum at an early stage in the fieldwork process; an accession code is needed before fieldwork commences for inclusion in the project design.
Digital archaeological archives
A Written Statement of Investigation (WSI) or porject design must include a 'Digital Management Plan' which sets out how the digital and digitised elements of the project (such as photographs, reports, illustrations, databases, photogrammetric images etc) will be archived. The digital archive should be deposited with the Archaeological Data Services (ADS) and follow their archiving protocol. The costs of these archival elements must be considered from the outset.
Be aware that:
- the collecting museum can not curate digital material for long term preservation and use
- ADS can ensure long-term accessibility and retention of quality of digital information
- all photographic recording must be deposited for long-term curation at ADS