The International Council on Archives (ICA) Expert Group on Archival Description (EGAD) announces the release of version 1.0 of the Records in Contexts (RiC) archival description standard. This release encompasses three key components: Records in Contexts–Foundations of Archival Description (RiC-FAD), Records in Contexts–Conceptual Model (RiC-CM), and Records in Contexts–Ontology (RiC-O). A fourth part, Records in Contexts–Application Guidelines (RiC-AG), is in the planning stages with work slated to commence in 2024.
This milestone marks the first stable and comprehensive version of RiC, representing a significant advancement in standard development. RiC replaces four existing ICA standards: General International Standard Archival Description (ISAD(G)), International Standard Archival Authority Records–Corporate Bodies, Persons, and Families (ISAAR(CPF)), International Standard Description of Functions (ISDF), and International Standard Description of Institutions with Archival Holdings (ISDIAH). The previous standards will continue to be available.
The version 1.0 release incorporates changes based on extensive feedback, totaling 165 comments from the professional community. These comments, along with ICA/EGAD decisions, will be published on the ICA/EGAD GitHub repository in early 2024.
Notable changes include the renaming of Foundations of Archival Description from Introduction to Archival Description, adjustments to the Conceptual Model, and a reduction of date entities from four to a single entity. The Ontology aligns with the Conceptual Model, featuring 105 classes, 61 datatype properties, and 400 object properties, making it more compact yet functionally enhanced compared to the 0.2 version.
The RiC-FAD, RiC-CM, and RiC-O versions 1.0 can be accessed and downloaded from their respective links. Furthermore, the RiC-O IRI is temporarily unavailable due to the ICA website transition.