An archival catalogue will contain a descriptive record for each item in the archives. Each descriptor will include a unique reference code and a descriptive name, together with a brief explanatory abstract. In addition it will typically include classifying, status and provenance information.

For records archives, items are normally grouped under higher level descriptors, termed "Series". Any series may belong to higher level parent series, forming a tree of materials descriptors with the most general descriptors at the top level and the most specific (items) at the bottom.
Note that, in Archive Browser "series" is a general term for all high level descriptors and therefore encompasses terms such as "fonds", "sub-series" and "file", that are commonly used in ISAD (International Standard for Archival Description) compliant systems to refer to materials descriptors above item level.

To locate items of interest in Archive Browser, you may:

• Search directly for materials by entering text to be matched against the reference code, name or abstract;
• Browse the series descriptor tree;
• Browse any of the classification systems (keywords, categories or functions) to locate associated materials; or
• Examine the provenance context to find materials that were created or used by specific persons or agencies.

Item records may include links to associated images and electronc documents. These are always displayed in a separate window, so you must configure your browser to permit Archive Browser to open popup windows in order to view them.