Minimum Record Recommendation for Museums and Collections (MDS v1.2)

The Minimum Record Recommendation is an online manual that specifies the most important data fields for the online publication of object information from museums and collections. “Minimum Record” stands for the smallest possible intersection of important data fields across disciplines and museum types. This list of data fields can be the basis for more in-depth cataloguing. The Minimum Record Recommendation is an application profile of the LIDO data schema. The recommendation is also compatible with the Europeana Data Model. The guideline focuses on controlled vocabularies and compliance with the FAIR and CARE principles. 

The Minimum Record Recommendation is intended to pave the way for smaller and larger museums and collections to publish their data online and to communicate relevant standards in an easy-to-understand, low-threshold approach. The aim is to raise awareness of data quality in cultural institutions and support them with online publication. The recommendation is intended for practical application in everyday museum work. 

The Recommendation has been developed by the Minimum Record Working Group. It was initiated in 2022 by the Museum and Media Desks of the German Digital Library (DDB), the Working Group on Digitisation of the Konferenz der Museumsberatungsstellen in den Ländern (KMBL) and digiS Berlin. Members of the working group include representatives from the following organisations, projects and coalitions: Institute for Museum Research - Staatliche Museen zu Berlin - Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Coordination Centre for Scientific University Collections in Germany - Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, digiCULT-Verbund eG, museum-digital Deutschland e. V., Landesstelle für die nichtstaatlichen Museen in Bayern, Museumsverband Hessen e. V., Museumsverband des Landes Brandenburg e. V., Museumsverband Rheinland-Pfalz e. V., Museumsverband Sachsen-Anhalt e. V., NFDI4Culture, NFDI4Memory, NFDI4Objects, Museum für Naturkunde Berlin, Übersee-Museum Bremen, Klassik Stiftung Weimar, Dresden State Art Collections, SODa Sammlungen Objekte Datenkompetenzen, Verbundzentrale des GBV (VZG), University Library of the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München and Integrated Authority File (Gemeinsame Normdatei). The Minimum Record Working Group is a working group of the Documentation Section of the German Museum Association.