Closing Ceased Serials Records

CONSER advocates different descriptive requirements for closing a serial record depending on what level of information and the source of that information is available to the cataloger regarding those set of elements CONSER categorized as Mandatory and Required.  

These elements are mandatory when describing or closing the ceased serial record: Publication status code (008/06), Ending date of publication (008/11-14), and a link to the Succeeding Title Information if applicable (785)

These elements are required (when the information is readily in hand) when closing a ceased serial record: Publication information of later/last issues (264), Designation of last issue or note relating to last issue (362), Update "latest issue consulted" note with the designation of the latest issue consulted or the last issue, if available. The Physical extent (300a) is optional. (CCM: 21.3.1)   

To emphasize, information readily in hand is not the same as the issue in hand. In CONSER, whether an element should be expressed in the ceased record, to what extent, and in what manner depends on which of three categories of information or source of information is available to the cataloger.

⮚The Last issue is in Hand. This situation allows the complete description of the ceased title/record as each of the elements CONSER categorizes as Mandatory and Required to be fully represented in the bibliographic record based on first-hand or verifiable  information.

362 1# $a Ceased with: Vol. 4 no. 5 (May 1990).

588 0# $a Vol. 3, no. 10 (October 1989); title from cover.

588 1# $a Vol. 4, no. 5 (May 1990).

⮚The Last issue is known, but not in Hand. This enables a less-than-complete description of the ceased title/record as some of the elements CONSER categorized as Mandatory and Required could be based on information ascertained from sources other than the issue in hand and the representation of those elements in the bibliographic record may lack the level of precision or fullness possible when the last issue is in hand.     

362 1# $a Ceased with no. 12, published in 2013.

588 0# $a No. 2, published in 2003; title from cover.

588 1# $a No. 10, published in 2011.

⮚The year of last issue known, but not exact issue. (CCM:8.6)

362 1# $a Ceased in 1987.

588 0# $a Vol. 2, no. 3 (Mar. 1978); title from caption.

588 1# $a Vol. 7, no. 4 (Apr. 1985).

⮚The Last issue is not known. This enables the least complete description of the ceased title/record as some of the elements CONSER categorized as Mandatory will be represented in the bibliographic record based on information ascertained from sources other than the issue in hand and some of the elements CONSER categorized as Required will be omitted altogether. When the last issue is unknown (cannot be ascertained), CONSER practice is to omit a ceased Date of Publication (362), the ending publication date (264c), and the physical extent (300a). However, the letter d is Mandatory in the Publication Status (008/06) and an Ending date (008/11-14) is also Mandatory (e.g. 19uu-19uu). (CCM: 21.3)