Understanding Info Items
Info items are the right choice when the object itself is not the focus, but its surrounding context. They help you record persons, locations, auction catalogues, exhibitions, or literature sources in a clean way and reuse them wherever needed.
What is an info item?
An item represents a concrete piece in your collection. That can be a painting, a coin, a fossil, or any other collectible you want to describe, show, and manage directly.
An info item, by contrast, describes the context around a collectible. It does not represent the actual object itself, but provides the information surrounding it. That is why info items often appear when you want to document relationships, provenance, or sources.
Typical examples include:
- An auction catalogue in which the piece was sold
- A person who owned the item
- A venue where the item was exhibited
- A newspaper article about the item
When you compare the two types side by side, the difference becomes clear: the collectible is the actual object in your collection, while the info item is the knowledge that makes that object easier to understand.
Creating and maintaining info items
You create info items when you need a reusable reference point. That is useful as soon as the same person, place, or source appears in several contexts. Instead of rewriting the information each time, you maintain it once and then link it to the relevant collectibles.
When creating one, choose a suitable template, give it a clear title, and add the details that matter for that context. That keeps an info item structured while still making it flexible enough to use in different situations.
Links between objects
Both collectibles and info items can reference info items. That is especially helpful when you want to use the same source in several places. A collectible can point to an auction catalogue, a location, or a person. In return, an info item can also appear in a larger context when it is relevant for multiple objects.
That gives you traceable relationships without having to create the same information multiple times. You keep the context in one place and reuse it wherever it is needed.
The view for an info item
Every info item has its own page, where you can immediately see which objects reference it. That is useful when you want to check the role of an info item or see where it is already used in the collection. It helps you quickly recognise whether a catalogue, person, or place already appears in several collectibles or other info items.
When info items are especially useful
Info items are especially strong when reuse and clarity matter. They help you keep sources, places, and people consistent and make relationships visible in one place.
- In provenance, when persons, steps, and evidence should be linked cleanly
- For sources and literature, when the same reference is needed more than once
- For places and institutions, when you want consistent naming across many objects
That keeps your collectibles focused on the actual piece, while info items provide the background that makes the piece understandable.