Object Passport
Staff create a persistent record for an enrolled possession, then update it through use and changing relationships. A reader follows the stable identifier into the material description, available accounts, permitted uses, recorded events, unresolved questions. Different readers may receive different fields according to their relation and permission.
| Record area | Operations performed by staff |
|---|---|
| Material identity and condition | Describe the instance, photograph relevant features, record changes |
| Ownership and use history | Attribute sources, compare evidence, record gaps or disputes |
| Custody and permission | Record responsibility, term, access, authorized activities |
| Media and accounts | Link photographs, scans, testimony, interpretation, generated narration |
| Relations and encounters | Record arrangements, handling, questions, repairs, correspondence |
| Questions and future proposals | Preserve unresolved inquiries and the terms for a possible next action |
For the camera, staff record receipt, an existing modification, hosted operation permission, an unknown repair history. A visitor contributes a technical explanation. Staff attribute it, compare evidence, consider a reply to the custodian. A portrait made during the visit receives a separate record. The camera's passport links the event and resulting print.
The record can survive a return, a withdrawal of personal attribution, material loss. Staff review those cases through withdrawal and material discontinuity. Images and software remain representations with particular scope. State and event history explain continuity through change.