Community forward : developing an open and free cataloguing standard for rare materials

Abstract

Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Materials (RDA Edition) (DCRMR) is a rare materials cataloguing standard aligned with the official RDA Toolkit. DCRMR is informed by core principles of community and sustainability while employing open-source publication models and infrastructure. The RBMS RDA Editorial Group, composed of rare materials cataloguers actively working in the field, is responsible for developing and maintaining DCRMR. This article discusses predecessor rare materials cataloguing standards that led to the development of DCRMR, the principles and constraints that shaped DCRMR from its initial inception to eventual release, the method and technical tools used to achieve the RBMS RDA Editorial Group's outcomes, and future directions for development.

[NOTE: The original version of this article was published in Library Resources & Technical Services (v. 67, no. 1 (2023)), https://doi.org/10.5860/lrts.67n1.26, a peer-reviewed, open-access journal published by the American Library Association. In this version of the article, the authors have internationalised the spelling and have made minor updates to the content to reflect developments in Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Materials (RDA Edition) since the publication of the original article.]