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Hello List,

Two weeks ago I submitted the following query to the list:

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Hello list,

On behalf of the Head Librarian at the Worcester Art Museum (WAM), Rebecca Morin, I have volunteered to research information related to collecting print auction catalogs. The WAM has collected and kept decades of Christie's, Parke-Bernet, and Skinner print auction catalogs, like many libraries. I reviewed the listserv archive and see that over the years many academic and museum libraries have removed these items from their collections. At the same time I notice that requests for scans from auction catalogs are just as frequent over the listserv. On June 17, 2013 Susan Ferrer-Vinent offered a great summary to her query about experiences using online "equivalents" of auction catalogs or the information within them http://lsv.arlisna.org/scripts/wa.exe?A2=ARLIS-L;44b31d7d.1306 I guess my starting question(s) at this point is this: how are we as a profession ensuring that we aren't all getting rid of our print auction catalogs? Do any major academic or museum libraries retain full runs as a matter of mission or do we have a running list of who has what?

I see that there is an auction catalogs sig with its own listserv that I am not currently subscribed to. If the membership thinks I should join and prefers that I move this conversation there, please advise.

Thank you in advance,

Janis

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I received replies from nine individuals, thank you! Here are some highlights of the replies:

- institutional holdings are not a comprehensive run

- kept in off-site storage and can be requested

- have kept what has been collected and are in the process of cataloging them

- collect/keep catalogs with items related to the museum's collection and enhance their catalog records with this information

- some libraries catalog the auction catalogs, some have lists, others have no holdings information

- have subscriptions to the print auction catalogs

Only one librarian mentioned the SCIPIO auction sales cataloging project https://artlibraries.on.worldcat.org/advancedsearch and https://help.oclc.org/Discovery_and_Reference/FirstSearch/FirstSearch_databases/SCIPIO

This blog entry from the Getty Research Institute Library provides some additional information for those (like me) who were unfamiliar with SCIPIO https://blogs.getty.edu/library/2017/07/11/scipio-art-and-rare-book-sales-catalogs/ It is unclear however if SCIPIO still exists as a standalone database and whether it's presence in the Art Discovery Group Catalogue provides holdings for all SCIPIO-participating institutions. And I still don't know what SCIPIO actually stands for!

I am curious whether those libraries that are cataloging their auction catalogs are providing their holdings information to OCLC and whether this information gets into SCIPIO by default or if that requires an extra step or formalized participation?

I will be passing this information on to the librarian at the Worcester Art Museum. I am very grateful for the replies that I received.

Sincerely,

Janis

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JANIS DESMARAIS, MA MS
College of the Holy Cross
Visual Literacy & Arts Librarian
phone: (508) 793-2453
Worcester, Massachusetts

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