Museum Collections Go On-LineHull, Quebec, March 12, 1999 – Coinciding with the start of the Museums and Web Conference today in New Orleans, the Canadian Museum of Civilization Corporation (CMCC) is proud to announce the official release of its Cultural Assets Information System (CAIS). Offering on-line access via the Internet, the CAIS offers professional researchers and the general public information on more than 50,000 historical artifacts and cultural treasures.
Each record within the CAIS database describes and explains an item from the vast and unique collections of the Canadian Museum of Civilization and the Canadian War Museum. Types of artifacts include archaeological specimens, aboriginal art, furniture, artwork, military objects, glass, porcelain, textiles and much more. In accessing the database, users are offered a description of each artifact, as well as information about its cultural and geographical origins, its age and dimensions and, in most cases, a full-colour photograph.
A prototype of the CAIS was released in December 1998, soliciting input from libraries, archives and other researchers. Since then, new features have been added and the system has been refined. Two new search methods — phonetic searches and stem (wildcard) searches — are included in these improvements. In addition, the CMCC has decided to offer some records before accompanying photographs are ready, in order to make the information available to researchers as quickly as possible.
Soon, an audio-visual component will been added. Users browsing through musical instrument listings — which currently include items as diverse as a classic children's hurdy-gurdy and a Maritime fiddle — will be able to not only view the artifact, but also to listen to its music and watch it being played. Other references will include video clips showing how the instruments are made.
The CAIS is an ongoing project, eventually expected to include all artifacts in the CMCC's extensive collections. It can be found on the CMCC website at: http://www.collections.civilization.ca/
A browse through the CMCC's award-winning website also offers online visitors an opportunity to shop in the Cyberboutique and to tour the Virtual Museum of New France. Coming soon, the CMCC's website will also have a new look — including additional features and information that's easier to find. A new and improved website for the twenty- first century is just one of the ways in which the CMCC tries to make its collections and scholarship available to the widest possible audience.
Information (media):
Media Relations Officer: (819) 776-7169
Senior Media Relations Officer: (819) 776-7167
Fax: (819) 776-7187
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