2.2. Identifiers for collections (INFORMATION)

I would argue strongly that the Catalogue should allow for entries of historical collections. Small collections may become “historical” over the course of the Catalogue’s assembly!

That aside…taxonomists often refer to specimens that were once part of a collection that is now defunct, its specimens lost or transferred to other institutions. So, having a place holder or PID for Museo Laurentii Theodori Gronovii, Lugdunum Batavorum [Leiden] (also known as Museum Gronovianum, Museo Lugdunensi Batavorum) would be helpful.

Also note that a single institution may associated with both a historical collection and an active collection, but the historical collection may exist at a separate institution. How many historical collections did Napoleon “transfer” to MNHN?

For a more recent example, the historical herpetology collection of the Southeastern Louisiana University (SLU) Vertebrate Museum was transferred to Louisiana State University Museum of Natural Science in the 1990s. Since then, SLU has established a new herp collection that includes 20% of historical herp collection from yet another institution, the Tulane University Museum of Natural History.

There are plenty more examples. It would be extremely difficult for any Catalog to capture all of them. But, having PIDs for historical collections would enable links to active ones.

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