GUIDELINES FOR THE CURATION OF GEOLOGICAL MATERIALS

attempt at an overall classification of fossil vertebrates difficult. Even these,
however, are not sufficient to allow accurate identification, for which specialist
help must be sought. A general work which, though flawed in detail, offers a
comprehensive and tabulated classification is A. S. Romer's 'Vertebrate Palaeontology'
1966 (3rd ed.), and is recommended for most museum collections. In a
similar fashion to the 'Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology', it offers opportunities
for multi-level classifications and for codified systems of classification.
Thus:
4000 Vertebrate Palaeontology
4100 Agnatha
4200 Pisces . . . etc.
4221 Elasmobranchii
4221-01 Selachii
(Source: Leicestershire Museums and Booth Museum, Brighton, after Romer
1966.)
Palaeobotanical classiJications. Palaeobotanical classification is difficult and
identification at the higher taxonomic levels a matter for the specialist. For the
majority of museum collections, it is probably sufficient for a fossil plant to be
classified simply as just that. The classification of large collections should be
considered a job for the specialist. A simple but useful approach for the
non-specialist might be to group specimens according to their gross morphology,
e.g. foliage, stems/roots, 'fruits', etc. A further strategy is to adopt geographical
subdivisions within a broad stratigraphical framework as a means of classification.
For the Upper Carboniferous, for example, this would be by coalfield or even
individual pits, if the quantity of material warrants it.
Any curator proposing palaeobotanical curation may benefit from the following
reading list:
General Introductions:
THOMAS, B. A., 1981 'The Evolution of Plants and Flowers'
OPEN UNIVERSITY, 1981
'The Evolution of Land Plants'
Texts (mainly palaeobotanical):
STEWART, W. N. 1983 'Palaeobotany and the Evolution of Plants'
TAYLOR, T. N. 1981 'Palaeobotany: an Introduction to Fossil Plant
Biology'
This includes a working classification on pp. 22-28.
Text (mainly neobotanical):
BIERHORST, D. W., 1971 'Morphology of Vascular Plants'
'Treatise' equivalent:
BOUREAU, E. (ed.) 'Trait6 de PalCobotanique' (4 of 9 proposed volumes
published 1964-1975.)
(3) Stratigraphic classifications. Classifications based on stratigraphy are of
significance to collections management, in particular for the arrangement of
collections in storage (see C3.5.1).
A stratigraphic classification is of the greatest importance for fossil material
because of the value of fossils in providing biochronological information.
Information retrieval systems may provide detailed stratigraphic data but they are
only as accurate as the original information itself. Biostratigraphers generally