SMR/HER

[Hugh]

Ok I don't mean to offend anyone with this subject
When I was doing my degree my uni completely failed at explaining what an SMR/HER is, and how it is used. As a curator I get the distinct impression from a lot of people (Contractors, Students and the occassional curator etc) that they don't know what one is.
What I wanted to know was how many people don't understand everything they think they should about an SMR/HER? If you all know then I'll shut up and get on with (boring) data input

Where?

[rachstebbs]

No, i completely agree with you, I never realised how important, let alone extensive it is until I came on placement. But then again, I'm not sure I'd have a use for it at university, at least not until I start my dissertation...

[the invisible man]

You'll do CRM in your 3rd year - 4th year in your case! I would have expected something like that to be at least mentioned in the introductory first year stuff though.

Today, Bradford. Tomorrow, well, Bradford probably.

[mysteryman]

We never did any SMR work at my university. The only way that I managed to get any experience and knowledge was through voluntary work at South Yorkshire Archaeology Service. I'd strongly recommend any students do some voluntary work on an SMR. It's definitely worth it.

[Reggie]

I did a part-time history degree course. In my case this also included about a third archaeology taken as optional or elective modules. We covered SMR/HER and other relevant archival sources in a number of modules in both subjects. Learning how to access and use such resources was seen by the course directors as an important part of our 'training', for future professional or amateur careers as 'historians' and/or 'archaeologists', and/or simply to assist with research for dissertations at BA or higher levels.

I should note here that my uni did not have an archaeology department but taught the subject in a 'continuing education' environment. A good proportion of our tutors taught on part-time contracts with their main jobs being in commercial archaeology, This has been a great help to me as I had a working knowledge and a good number of contacts in "the real world" before I graduated and began looking for work.

It does seem strange that some of the more conventional archaeology degree courses miss archives out completely.

[Alfie]

We didnt cover any aspect of commercial archaeology at all, we did chinese emporers floating on mercury lakes in jade coffins instead. Tricky devils to dig by all accounts.

[srd123]

Perhaps we were more fortunate than most then? We did an intro to SMR and other sources, we did a fair bit of stuff on legislation and PPGs and we also had the head of the field unit in to talk about "real world" archaeology.

[flashdigger]

I can safely say that i learnt next to nothing of any value for commercial archaeology on my degree. I did manage to get to grips with the SMR through my disertation but most of my fellow students wouldn't have known the difference between SMR and MMR!!

[BAJR Host]

Like so many things in archaeology... and why the BAJR guides are so important.... many of us use words and terms that we do not fully understand... ie a digger knows not what a consultant does... a curator is not sure what a project officer actually does... etc etc... what is an SMR? who is it for? etc etc. I have recently been asked to create an online SMR for a county.... I reminded them that complex search facilities and deep drilled queries were not the point as the SMR was for the public not academics. THe quality of requested info did not have to change just the way it was acecssed.

The current thread on 'I thought you all used toothbrushes' will hopefully lead to a document that explains a lot of preconceptions and misconceptions....

SMRs among that list!

Another day another WSI?

[star-nosed mole]

I think SMRs and the NMR can be hugely confusing to many - even seasoned users.

One thing that is dead important tho - the NMR and SMR do not contain the same info! Although the NMR is supposed to be an index to the SMRs, this can sometimes not be the case. Some records are in the NMR but not the SMR, and many thousands are in the county SMR but not the NMR. And of course, all SMRs have different ways of presenting and searching their stuff...and a few are now searchable on-line through the ADS..

Getting confused just writing about it!!