CC-Treffen: Invitation to the Clustermeeting des N4O CC Authority Files

Dear colleagues, dear community,

We are delighted to invite you to the cluster meeting

on 12 August 2026, at 1.00 pm,
on the topic ‘The Archaeology Thesaurus Working Group: A standardised vocabulary for archaeology’

with Victoria Biesterfeld from the LVR-Landesmuseum Bonn.

Background

Controlled vocabularies are essential for the digital cataloguing of archaeological collections. Only objects with standardised designations can be found in the long term and comply with the FAIR principles of good research data management. Whilst thesauri that have long been recognised and standardised exist in the disciplines of art and cultural history, a comparable vocabulary has so far been largely lacking in archaeology.

The Archaeology Thesaurus Working Group

The Archaeology Thesaurus Working Group – an independent working group with no institutional affiliation, established as an initiative of the Archaeological Museum of Hamburg in 2008 – has set itself the aim of developing a standardised, nationally applicable vocabulary for archaeological object designations. This is intended to facilitate the cataloguing and inventorying of extensive collections in state museums and state offices, as well as smaller regional collections.

Archaeological Identification Guides

As interim steps towards the digital thesaurus, the ‘Archaeological Identification Guides’ have been published since 2012, in which individual groups of objects (such as brooches, belts, arrowheads and spearheads) are progressively documented. These have quickly established themselves as useful standard reference works both in practical collection management and amongst excavation firms.

Current Focus

The working group’s current focus is on the digital conversion of the so-called Archaeological Object Designation Thesaurus (AOT) into an interoperable format that can be used independently of specific institutions and software. The plan is to make the vocabulary available in xTree and to continue to maintain it editorially there, in order to facilitate its technical implementation in various collection databases and to ensure that their users always have access to an up-to-date vocabulary. In parallel, further object groups are gradually being catalogued and published in print as well as integrated digitally; naturally, mappings to other thesauri are also planned.

Content of the presentation

The presentation introduces the working group, its origins, working methods and objectives, and discusses where points of connection with the NFDI4Objects community arise – particularly with regard to technical solutions, interoperability and possible collaborations in the further development of the digital archaeology thesaurus.

Zoom access details

Join the Zoom meeting

Meeting ID: 945 0898 9488
Passcode: 357332

No registration is required; we look forward to seeing you there.