Conclusion

The case study on the netsuke allowed you to work carefully through the ways in which descriptions can be created. Such descriptions, when systematically applied to a group of objects, can be used as the basis for systems of classification. You have already learned that the key to description is observing and then communicating your observations. You have also worked with a museum’s collections database and can apply your experience the next time you use a museum website that offers public access to their collection database. Description is also the basis for comparing objects and can be enhanced by exploring the context of an object. But that is a different topic to study.