Catastrum, 2019 (6. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)

6. (2019) 1. szám - Aspects of Introducing Cadastral Collections

Aspects of Introducing Cadastral Collections Records and map documentation of cadastral surveys ordered in the territory of the Austro(- Hungar­ian) Monarchy can be found in several countries, safeguarded by several agencies (central and regional bodies of state surveying, municipalities) and public collections (national, county or special archives, national library, local or special museum). For the complete overview and exploration of the source ma­terial it is essential that the professional carers of the similar collections and the researchers learn about them in details. The tutorials can be prepared by them, and we would like to help their work with the instructions below. Obviously, it is not possible to answer every question perfectly in every collection, but any small information can bring us closer to the topic and its sources. The introductions may inform researchers that: (a) records concerning the organization, personnel and operation of the cadastral survey, describing the process and the history of the survey, moreover, (b) in which collections can the so-called “operatums”; maps, sketches, lists, records and other documents created by the survey, that were handled separately from the records both in that era and now in public collections, be searched for, (c) in case of the description of the collection, what exactly is to be found there, what is its source value (e.g. information about their revisions is important), what help can it be researched with (paper-based, electronic helpdesk, archival registers, online data, digitised files on com­puters, research room, internet, etc.). 1. Topic. The description can be about an area (e.g. Gödöllő, Újvidék / Novi Sad, Croatia, a county) or about an institution or collection. 2. Historical overview. When was the area surveyed - concretual, or detailed - cadastral (reassess­ment, estimation, etc.? Documents regarding the operation of the cadastral organization (legislation, decrees, instructions, reports, offices, departmental files), as well as the professional life of the employees in the collection. Which department carried out the survey (competence), which institutions (financial administration, district court) safeguard cadastral materials among their own records? 3. Safeguarding places. Which institutions keep cadastral documentation regarding the area? Occa­sionally, the description of several collections may be necessary (e.g. cadastral maps of Budapest or the border counties such as Komárom). 4. Acquisitions. When, from whom and in what way has the documentation become part of the col­lection? The files, records and recollections of the given time can serve us with data. The integrity of the collection is determined to a large extent by the fact how the records arrived to their current archives; whether the documents have been retrieved from the creator of the document, via official transfer of the records, or indirectly from another institution, possibly by saving from scrapping or the destruction of the documents. 5. Description of the collection. Which type, age, and - in case of the introduction of the collec­tion, which area the documentation is related to, can be found in the collection? What is the structure of the collection (e.g. the alphabetical order of counties, settlements, chronological order, including the increasing order of coupon numbers, etc.). Description of the collection according to general or certain aspects (settlement, document type). A detailed description of the documentation available besides the maps, the identification of the deficiencies. 6. Data content. Presentation of the data content and source value of each type of cadastral material. It is particularly important to describe the types of documents that have not been disclosed in detail by the prior professional research (e.g. mile-sheets, estimation documents). 7. Researchability. What contemporary or modern aids have been prepared for the records, and how can they be obtained? Access to paper-based, electronic, online directories, databases, and digitised documents. The history of making the digitised files (who, when, what technical parameters was the job completed by). Possibilities and limitations of access to the research room, and making copies. 8. Professional literature. Bibliographical particulars of the literature prepared upon the cadastral records regarding the field or being kept in the collection (possibly the evaluation of the volumes with a short annotation). Catastrum is open to publish the introductions. REISZ T. Csaba - TÖRÖK Enikő

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