The Catalogue & Items

The Catalogue is the heart of eMuCollections, containing detailed records for every individual object (or bulk lot of identical objects) in your care.

Viewing the Catalogue

Navigate to Collections > Catalogue. This view provides a powerful search interface. You can filter the collection by:

• Keyword
• Object Name
• Current Status
• Location
• Publishing State

Creating an Item Record

When an object is ready for detailed cataloguing (usually after it has been Accessioned), you can create an Item record.

1. Click New Item from the Catalogue.
2. Fill out the relevant fields. EmuCollections uses strictly structured data to ensure consistency:
   • Identification: Accession numbers, Object Names, Titles.
   • Physical Details: Dimensions, Materials, Condition.
   • Relationships: Link the item to its Accession, current Physical Location, Creator/Maker Contacts, and Subjects/Themes.
3. Save the record.

Dynamic Form Layouts

Depending on the diverse nature of your collection (e.g., Art vs. Natural History vs. Archive), displaying irrelevant fields can clutter the interface. eMuCollections supports Dynamic Form Layouts.

• Administrators can define custom layouts (e.g., an “Art Object” layout vs. a “Geology Specimen” layout).
• When viewing or editing an Item, you can switch between these layouts using the dropdown menu in the top right corner. The system will remember your preference.

Publishing to the Web

eMuCollections allows you to curate which records are visible to the public via external portals or APIs.

• Single Item: On an Item Detail page, click the Publish button to toggle its visibility.
• Bulk Publishing: From the Catalogue list view, select multiple items using the checkboxes, click the Actions dropdown, and choose Publish Selected Objects.

Important: Changing an item’s status to “Deaccessioned” or attaching a highly restrictive Cultural Protocol will automatically override its published state and remove it from public view to ensure compliance.