Best Practices for Use of MARC Local Field 977

See also

• Function of 977 field in holdings (in HOLLIS and Aeon)
• Harvard defined MARC fields

Introduction

The Harvard local field 977 is defined for use when an item is bound, housed, or shelved with one or more other items, such that retrieval depends on the consultation of a different holdings record or barcode. This best practice is intended to bring together instructions for use of this field in each of these areas.  Please note that complete field information on 977 may be found here:  Harvard Defined MARC Fields and a comparison of some uses of 977 fields may be found here: Function of 977 field in holdings.

CAUTION: Due to the "title level request" functionality in HOLLIS, patrons may experience difficulty in requesting a work that is bound or housed with other works if there is more than one copy of the "host" work attached to the bibliographic record. MSWG does not currently have a solution for this. Libraries that use Aeon will not have this problem.

“Bound With” Volumes

A "bound with" (also known as a Sammelband or Binder's Volume) is a volume containing two or more bibliographically unrelated components bound together after having been issued. They may be cataloged as a collection, or the cataloger and bibliographer may choose to create bibliographic records for each component manifestation connected by a linking field to the first component in the collection. This best practice is to guide the cataloger through that second process.

In Alma, each barcode may only be used once, and assigning the same barcode to more than one item will result in an error. For bound with volumes, the item record should be attached to the bibliographic record for the first component in the collection. The holdings records for each subsequent component are then linked to the holdings of the first component by means of a 977 field in their respective holdings records.  

• Each component should have its own bibliographic record.

• Each bibliographic record should have its own holdings record, all with identical call numbers, but with other differences (see below).

• Only the 1st component should have an Item record.

• Catalogers are encouraged to include a 562 note that clearly describes the item's relationship to other components

Instructions

Holdings record for the 1st component

562__ $$a Bound with…, or Bound together… to list all components in the volume (punctuation should follow ISBD conventions for MARC21 field 505 contents)

OR

562__ $$a Bound with (number/several) others.

OR

562 __$$a X of Y components in a volume titled...

Holdings record for subsequent components

977 __ $$a [100, 110, or 111 of first component, if applicable] $$s [240 of first component, if applicable] $$t [130 or 245 $$ a, f, g, k, n, p of first component] $$f [MMS ID of first component]

AND

562__ $$a Bound with…, or Bound together… to list all components in the volume

OR

562__ $$a Bound with (first title) and others

OR

562 __$$a X of Y components in a volume titled...

PLEASE NOTE: A new location code for subsequent component holdings was created in 2021 and is being used by numerous units.  When a holding has this new code (BOUND), a user must refer to the parent/sibling record to determine the actual location. Use of this location code is not required for bound/analyzed titles for all libraries. Units may continue to use and update existing location codes to reflect real physical locations, but they will be required to do the maintenance for all subsequent component records. Whether a unit uses the new code or not, it is highly recommended that each unit establish a consistent policy regarding usage of the code, and attempt to have a uniform practice for their bound-with / analyzed titles. 

Please see Alma Location Codes: Usage Information for further details.

Example 1

Amadeo Vives' Don Lucas del Cigarral (990097381880203941), bound with the composer's El talisman prodigioso and El principe, and with Arrieta's El potosi submariino and G. Gimenez' La torre del oro.

1st component holdings record  

562 __ $$a Bound together: Don Lucas del cigarral ; El talisman prodigioso ; El principe ruso / Vives -- El potosi submarino / Arrieta -- La torre del oro / G. Gimenez.

Subsequent component holdings record

562 __ $$a Bound together: Don Lucas del cigarral ; El talisman prodigioso ; El principe ruso / Vives -- El potosi submarino / Arrieta -- La torre del oro / G. Gimenez.

977 __ $$a Vives, Amadeo, 1871-1932. $$t Don Lucas del Cigarral. $$f 990097381880203941

Example 2

Atrocities of justice under British rule in Egypt (MMS ID 990040840690203941), in a cloth case with other pamphlets by W.S. Blunt.

1st component holdings record  

562 __ $$a No. 1 of 8 pamphlets by W.S. Blunt and housed in a cloth case lettered: W.S. Blunt pamphlets. 

Subsequent component holdings record

The military fox-hunting case at Cairo. A supplement to Blue book Egypt 3, 1901 (MMS ID 990044906200203941)

562 __ $$a No. 5-6 of 8 pamphlets by W.S. Blunt and housed in a cloth case lettered: W.S. Blunt pamphlets. 

977 __ $$a Blunt, Wilfrid Scawen, 1840-1922. $$t Atrocities of justice under British rule in Egypt $$f 990040840690203941

Example 3

El Ambigu de Buenos Aires, no. 2 (agosto de 1822) (MMS ID 990039299510203941), bound with issues of 4 other serials.

1st component holdings record  

562 __ $$a Bound with issues of 4 other serials.  

Subsequent component holdings records

562 __ $$a Bound with issues of 4 other serials.  

977 __ $$t Ambigu de Buenos Aires $$f 990039299510203941

Serials and Monographic Series

When a serial undergoes a title change, a single bound volume can contain issues that belong to two different bibliographic records. Additionally, cumulative indexes published under the most recent title can contain information from previous titles. Catalogers may also use the 977 to refer users to the holdings record for a monographic series when a volume is cataloged individually, but classed and shelved with the other volumes in the series.

Please note:  Information about the issues to which the linking field pertained was placed at the beginning of the H77's first subfield in Aleph.  In Alma's 977 field, this information should be placed in the $g.

Bound volume (or microfilm reel) of a serial or a classed-together monographic series within which the title of the serial or the classed-together monographic series changes:

977 in one of the serial holdings records points to the bibliographic record of the earlier or later title, where the item record for the entire bound volume (or microfilm reel) is located

Example:

Continued title:

The woman's journal. (MMS ID 990024903780203941)

Continuing title holdings record:

Woman's journal and suffrage news. (MMS ID 990024903790203941)

562 __ $$a Vol. 43:no.41-52 bound with Woman's journal.

977 __ $$t Woman's journal (Boston, Mass. : 1870) $$g  Vol. 43:no.41-52 $$f 990024870490203941

Cumulative index that covers more than one serial title (due to title changes):

977 in the holdings record(s) of the other serial title(s) point to the bibliographic record of the earlier or later serial title where the item record for the cumulative index is located

Example:

Location of cumulative index:

Cahiers de géographie du Québec. (MMIS ID 990001105860203941)

Indexed title:

Cahiers de géographie de Québec (MMS ID 990001105860203941)

977__ $$t Cahiers de géographie du Québec $$g index to 18./25.année (1974/1981) $$f 99153819981103941

Monographic series classed together:

977 in holdings record attached to the bibliographic record of an analyzed title points to the serial bibliographic record for the monographic series, where all the item records for the series are located

Example:

Main series:

Annales littéraires de l'Université de Franche-Comté. (MMS ID 990081627510203941)

Analyzed title holdings record:

La presse catholique en Franche-Comté : Cité Fraternelle, 1944-1967 (MMS ID 990113647040203941)

977__ $$t Annales littéraires de l'Université de Franche-Comté $$f 990081627510203941

Container identifiers and Aeon

Catalogers describing items housed in a container with other items may use the 977 in one of three ways:

"Bound with" method

The container is treated as a "binding", and the barcode used for access is applied to the outside of the container and to an item contained within, usually an item at the front or the top of a box (see "Atrocities of justice under British rule in Egypt" example above).  The 977 field points to the bibliographic record to which this item is attached.

"Collection" method:

The container is one of many in a collection of items on similar topics or of similar provenance. There is a bibliographic record for the collection, and the barcode for each container is attached to this record. Each component of the collection has a 977 that points to the collection record.

Aeon method:

The subfield w has been defined to hold a container identifier, such as a box barcode, when the holdings represents a component in a box. See the Examples section below for an explanation of how this subfield may be used. When a patron requests the item in Aeon, the contents of the $$w will be fed into the Aeon barcode field.

A 977 field that contains only a $$w is best used when items are collected in a container for shelving and storage purposes (for example: pamphlets that are not individually housed in a way that allow them to stand on a shelf, individual issues of newspapers in a flat file box). These items usually have no intellectual relationship and are together solely due to their similar formats.

• • • $$w may be used alone in field 977 
    • If $$w is used alone, the field will not display to patrons in HOLLIS
    • $$w will be mapped to the Aeon request form in a hidden field when a patron clicks the View in Library link in HOLLIS. The contents of $$w are visible only to staff using the Aeon client. 
    • Each component should have its own item record, as required for use of Aeon
    • $$w has no functionality outside of Aeon, though it may be used to record the barcode of the host container at the discretion of individual libraries

Examples

977__ $$w 32044124424110

977__ $$w RSP8WD

977__ $$w GBXA 568

977__ $$t Hebrew pamphlets : Various subjects : collection 2113. $$f 99153847579803941 $$w 32044101434322

977__  $$t Bulletin of the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. $$f 990041111370203941 $$w HB53EG

Note on 977 _9:

Libraries may use the second indicator 9 to suppress the entire note from HOLLIS view. This is not recommended for libraries that do not use Aeon.