Parts Level:  Date

Definition:  Date of origin of the manuscript.

Comment:  Century/centuries using the standard paleographic system of the letter "s." (for "saeculo") followed by roman numerals combined with superscript arabic numerals or Latin abbreviations; see Appendix 2 for a sample translation table. For dated manuscripts and for documents, include here their date to an appropriate century segment (so that they, too, will respond to a broader general date query). If the date is uncertain, it may be followed by a question mark; if the date covers a span of time, it may be so indicated.

Example:

• s. VIII or s. IX (either 8th or 9th century
• s. XIII-XIV (13th through 14th centuries)
• s. XIII/XIV (turn of the 13th to the 14th century)
• s. XVIⁱⁿ (= saeculo sextodecimo ineunte, i.e. early 16th century)
• s. XV² (second half of the 15th century; the manuscript is dated 1466)

Properties:  Data type: text. Field size: 50 characters.

Required?:  Yes.