Set vs individual records for multipart print material other than serials

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Set vs. individual records for multipart print material (other than periodicals)

This policy only applies to print works that are issued in multiple volumes.

Use a monographic set record for complete works in multiple volumes that are published in the same year with the same title.

  • Examples: Encyclopedias and multivolume biographies where all volumes have the same title

For a multivolume set issued in a container such as a slipcase, even when the volumes are published in the same year with the same title.

  • If you will be circulating the volumes in the container as one piece, attach to the record for the set.
  • If you will be circulating the volumes separately, attach to the record for the individual volume.
  • Example: The Lyrics: 1956 To the Present which was issued as two volumes in a slipcase

Use an individual record for separate works published in a series.

  • Example: The Great Books of the Western World series—each volume has a separate title

For multivolume works on the same subject by the same author, published in different years with different titles or subtitles.

  • Use individual records for each circulating volume.
  • Sets that do not circulate may be attached to a monographic set record.
  • Example: the biography of Winston Churchill by William Manchester. Volume 1 was published in 1983, Volume 2 in 1988, and Volume 3 in 2012. Each volume has a different title.

Keep in mind that dividing a set and circulating individual items may require the creation of a new bibliographic record.

Retrospective cataloging of existing items is highly recommended but not required.

Rev. 07-2024