If you are encoding an RDA vocabulary in a MARC 21 Bibliographic 340 subfield and identifying it as such, then you need to use the term as found. The RDA VESs are controlled vocabularies, just like any other source of authoritative terms.
If you are recording the term in a 300 $b subfield, then this is not tied to a specific vocabulary and the plural version of the RDA term could be used.
As to the options under "Recording" in the element "illustrative content", the RSC will soon evaluate which of these should remain in this location vs. moving them under "unstructured description".
Kathy
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Kathryn Glennan
Head, Cataloging & Metadata Services
University of Maryland Libraries
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Original Message:
Sent: Mar 19, 2021 09:00 PM
From: Adam Schiff
Subject: Coding Illustrative content in MARC 340 $p
We are going to be discussing whether we will start coding 340 $p for illustrative content. RDA gives several options for recording this element:
Record a term in the singular or plural, as applicable.
Record an uncontrolled term or a term that is transcribed from a source of information.
coat of arms
facsimile
form
genealogical table
graph
illumination
illustration
map
photograph
plan
portrait
sample
I tested whether OCLC Connexion would accept the new code and found that it can be used now, e.g. 340 ## $p illustration $p map $2 rdaill
What I am wondering is whether the use of the code is restricted to terms in the singular from the RDA Illustrative Content vocabulary encoding scheme, or whether because RDA says that you have the option to record a term in the singular or plural you can also use the $2 code with plural terms.
Has anyone started recording 340 $p? If you use the terms found in the vocabulary encoding scheme, should they be recording in the singular with $2 rdaill, or is it permissible to record plural terms even though the VES terms are in the singular?
Adam L. Schiff
Principal Cataloger
University of Washington Libraries
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Adam Schiff
Principal Cataloger
University of Washington Libraries
He/Him/His
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