Importing a Structure

Bring an existing fonds hierarchy in from CSV or EAD3 XML. Useful when:

• You're migrating from ArchivesSpace, AtoM, or another catalogue
• You have a spreadsheet of finding-aid headings ready to go
• You want to set up the skeleton structure quickly, then assign accessions later

Available on Professional plans and above.

---

CSV import

Required columns

Column	Required	What it is
fond_title	✓	The top-level fond name
subfond_title		Sub-fond name (optional)
series_title		Series name
subseries_title		Sub-series name
reference_code		Your institutional ref
date_from		ISO date (YYYY-MM-DD or just YYYY)
date_to		ISO date
description		Narrative description
biog_hist		Biographical / administrative history (fond level)

One row per leaf node. Empty columns inherit from the parent.

Example

fond_title,series_title,reference_code,date_from,date_to,description
Thornton Family Papers,,GB-LN-THO,1856,1948,Records of the Thornton family...
Thornton Family Papers,Correspondence,GB-LN-THO/1,1856,1948,Letters in and out
Thornton Family Papers,Photographs,GB-LN-THO/2,1890,1940,Studio portraits and snapshots
Thornton Family Papers,Diaries,GB-LN-THO/3,1872,1920,Personal diaries of Emily and Mary

Running the import

1. Settings → Exports → Import Profiles tab.
2. Click + New Profile, pick Fonds structure (CSV).
3. Upload the CSV. The platform validates and shows a preview.
4. Fix any reported errors (most commonly: missing required columns, malformed dates).
5. Click Import.

The structure appears in Fonds immediately. Accessions remain unassigned until you place them.

---

EAD3 import

If you have an existing finding aid in EAD3 XML (.xml file from a previous catalogue):

1. Settings → Exports → Import Profiles tab.
2. Click + New Profile, pick EAD3 finding aid.
3. Upload the file.
4. The platform shows a preview of what it's extracted — fond, sub-fonds, series, sub-series, with descriptions and date ranges.
5. Import.

The Archiver imports the hierarchy and descriptions; container elements (boxes, folders) are flattened into sub-series. Item-level records in the EAD3 are imported as placeholder accessions you can then link your actual files to.

What's supported

• Multi-level hierarchies (the full ISAD(G) ladder)
• <unittitle>, <unitdate>, <unitid>, <scopecontent>, <bioghist>, <accessrestrict>
• Reference codes (<unitid type="primary">)
• Dates in attributes (<unitdate normal="1856/1948">)

What's not

• Custom local schemas that aren't valid EAD3
• Inline links to digital objects (<dao>) — these are dropped; relink after import

---

Common errors

Error	Fix
Required column missing	The CSV needs fond_title at minimum.
Date format invalid	Use ISO YYYY-MM-DD or YYYY. 1/3/1988 won't parse.
Duplicate fond title	Two fond-level rows with the same title clash. Use different reference_code values, or merge in the source.
EAD3 schema mismatch	The XML must validate against EAD3. Older EAD 2002 files need converting first.

---

After import

• Assign accessions to the imported structure — see Assigning accessions.
• Review descriptions — the AI can refine inherited descriptions on request; use AI Organise with a hint like "tighten the series descriptions" if helpful.
• Re-export to verify round-tripping — Settings → Exports → EAD3.