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Browse information objects endpoint

GET /api/informationobjects

This endpoint will obtain a list of information objects (AKA archival descriptions) and the total count. The results can be filtered using the same parameters as the advanced search page (detailed below).

See also

For more information on working with archival description records in AtoM, see: Archival Descriptions. For further information on Advanced search, see: Advanced search

Information object fields returned include:

  • reference_code: The full inherited reference code of the description. If the Admin setting for reference code inheritance is turned off, then only the identifier will be included in the response.
  • slug: the slug of the description assigned by AtoM.
  • title: the formal or supplied title of the description; equivalent to ISAD(G) 3.1.2.
  • creators: The names of any creators associated with the description; equivalent to ISAD(G) 3.2.1 or ISAAR(CPF) 5.1.2. Can return multiple values.
  • creation_dates: Dates of creation. Equivalent to ISAD(G) 3.1.3; however, only creation dates will be returned - other types (e.g. accumulation, broadcasting, etc) are not included in the response. Can return multiple values.
  • level_of_description: The level of description of the description.
  • repository: the archival institution associated with the description.
  • physical_characteristics: Physical characteristics and technical requirements; equivalent to ISAD(G) 3.4.4.
  • place_access_points: place access points that have been associated with the description. Can return multiple values.
  • thumbnail_url: the path to the thumbnail of a linked digital object associated with the description.

When returning the response, draft descriptions will be hidden, but other ACL rules will be ignored (including thumbnail restrictions) for performance reasons.

The amount of results returned in a response is limited by the global Admin setting for Results per page. The skip parameter (described below) can be used to page results - for example, if 10 results are returned in the first request, following request can include a parameter to skip the first 10 records in the response.

Example request

GET /api/informationobjects HTTP/1.1
Host: www.example.com

Example response

HTTP/1.1 200 OK
Content-Type: application/json; charset=utf-8

{
  "total": 1143,
  "results": [
    {
      "reference_code": "CA ON00311 PF41",
      "slug": "john-honsberger-fonds",
      "title": "John Honsberger fonds",
      "repository": "The Law Society of Upper Canada Archives",
      "physical_characteristics": "Some items in the fonds are stored folded.",
      "level_of_description": "Fonds",
      "creators": [
        "Honsberger, John David"
      ],
      "creation_dates": [
        "1763-2012"
      ],
      "place_access_points": [
        "Toronto"
      ],
      "thumbnail_url": "http:\/\/127.0.0.1\/uploads\/r\/law-society-of-upper-canada-archives\/2\/5\/1\/251a9152c6e71751519dc49086d62f3abde38d34619f66516ca0edf97076a1cf\/honsberger_142.jpg"
    },
    {
      "reference_code": "CA ON00311 PF41-PF41-5-2011053-026",
      "slug": "thomas-b-townsend-to-thomas-b-townsend-the-younger-deed-of-land",
      "title": "Thomas B. Townsend to Thomas B. Townsend the younger: deed of land",
      "repository": "The Law Society of Upper Canada Archives",
      "physical_characteristics": "Item is stored folded.",
      "level_of_description": "Item",
      "creation_dates": [
        "30 May 1903"
      ]
    },
    {
      "reference_code": "CA ON00311 PF41-PF41-5-2011053-025",
      "slug": "charles-marriott-et-al-to-jane-m-kerr-deed-of-land-situate-on-rosedale-road-toronto",
      "title": "Charles Marriott et al to Jane M. Kerr: deed of land situate on Rosedale Road, Toronto",
      "repository": "The Law Society of Upper Canada Archives",
      "physical_characteristics": "Item is stored folded.",
      "level_of_description": "Item",
      "creation_dates": [
        "26 Nov. 1900"
      ]
    },
    {
      "reference_code": "CA ON00311 PF41-PF41-5-2011053-024",
      "slug": "mortgage-william-hanlan-et-al-to-simpson-hill",
      "title": "Mortgage : William Hanlan et al to Simpson Hill",
      "repository": "The Law Society of Upper Canada Archives",
      "level_of_description": "Item",
      "creation_dates": [
        "8 Mar. 1900"
      ]
    },
    {
      "reference_code": "CA ON00311 PF41-PF41-5-2011053-023",
      "slug": "quit-claim-deed-daniel-hanlon-et-al-to-william-hanlon",
      "title": "Quit claim deed: Daniel Hanlon et al to William Hanlon",
      "repository": "The Law Society of Upper Canada Archives",
      "level_of_description": "Item",
      "creation_dates": [
        "14 Mar. 1895"
      ]
    },
    {
      "reference_code": "CA ON00311 PF41-PF41-5-2011053-019",
      "slug": "abstracts-of-title-2",
      "title": "Abstracts of title",
      "repository": "The Law Society of Upper Canada Archives",
      "physical_characteristics": "Items in this file were previously folded.",
      "level_of_description": "File",
      "creation_dates": [
        "1894-1895, 1900"
      ]
    },
    {
      "reference_code": "CA ON00311 PF41-PF41-5-2011053-022",
      "slug": "mortgage-william-hanlon-to-the-trust-loan-co-of-canada",
      "title": "Mortgage: William Hanlon to the Trust & Loan Co. of Canada",
      "repository": "The Law Society of Upper Canada Archives",
      "level_of_description": "Item",
      "creation_dates": [
        "2 Mar. 1895"
      ]
    },
    {
      "reference_code": "CA ON00311 PF41-PF41-5-2011053-018",
      "slug": "mortgage-william-hanlon-to-richard-coffey",
      "title": "Mortgage: William Hanlon to Richard Coffey",
      "repository": "The Law Society of Upper Canada Archives",
      "level_of_description": "Item",
      "creation_dates": [
        "19 Mar. 1894"
      ]
    },
    {
      "reference_code": "CA ON00311 PF41-PF41-5-2011053-021",
      "slug": "conveyance-john-hanlon-et-al-to-william-hanlon",
      "title": "Conveyance: John Hanlon et al to William Hanlon",
      "repository": "The Law Society of Upper Canada Archives",
      "level_of_description": "Item",
      "creation_dates": [
        "11 Feb. 1895"
      ]
    },
    {
      "reference_code": "CA ON00311 PF41-PF41-5-2011053-020",
      "slug": "hanlon-hill-certificates",
      "title": "Hanlon & Hill: certificates",
      "repository": "The Law Society of Upper Canada Archives",
      "level_of_description": "File",
      "creation_dates": [
        "1894-1900"
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Request parameters

All search and filter parameters available to users via the Advanced search user interface can also be used as parameters to filter the API endpoint’s response, including boolean queries. In most cases, the implementation is identical, with a few variations outlined below. Further examples of how to construct the requests with parameters are included below the explanatory notes for the available parameters.

Boolean criteria parameters

  • sq0: Query string. Used submit search terms.
  • so0: Query operator. Available options are and, or, and not. The default operator when the parameter is not included is and.
  • sf0: Query field. Used to limit the boolean parameters to searching within a specific field of the information objects. Options include:
    • _all : Search all indexed fields. When no sf0 parameter is included, this is the default.
    • title: Limit boolean search query to title field - the formal or supplied title of the description; equivalent to ISAD(G) 3.1.2.
    • identifier: Limit boolean search to the identifier field.
    • referenceCode: Limit boolean search to the full inherited reference code value of descriptions
    • scopeAndContent: Limit boolean search query to the Scope and content field; equivalent to ISAD(G) 3.3.1
    • archivalHistory: Limit boolean search query to the Archival history field; equivalent to ISAD(G) 3.2.3
    • extentAndMedium: Limit boolean search query to the Extent and medium field; equivalent to ISAD(G) 3.1.5
    • genre: Limit boolean search query to genre access points associated with descriptions.
    • subject: Limit boolean search query to subject access points associated with descriptions.
    • name: Limit boolean search query to name access points associated with descriptions (e.g. authority records associated with a description not as a creator but as a name access point).
    • place: Limit boolean search query to place access points associated with descriptions.

An unlimited number of criteria can be sent by incrementally increasing the number in the above parameters (e.g. sq1, so1, sf1, etc). They must by consecutive numbers starting at zero and the only required parameter is the query string.

Tip

It is possible to pass query operators within a single combined string by directly adding AND, OR, or AND NOT to your query string value. This is best tested and explored by playing with the advanced search interface in AtoM, and using the URL parameters returned with the response as parameters for the API. For example, if you use the advanced search interface, and add “taxes AND investments” to the query field, and limit it to Scope and content, the parameters passed via the URL when the results are returned are:

/api/informationobjects/?sq0=taxes+AND+investments&sf0=scopeAndContent

This is the same as manually increasing the parameter numbers and repeating the criteria indivudually, like so:

/api/informationobjects?sq0=taxes&sfo=scopeAndContent&sq1=investments&sf1=scopeAndContent

An example query in the AtoM search interface

See the examples below for more instances of this.

You can also use other boolean operators to enhance the results returned such as * wildcards or ~ fuzzy searching. For more information on available boolean operators, see: Boolean operators in the Advanced search documentation.

Note that the boolean criteria parameters can also be used in combination with the filter parameters outlined below.

Example requests with Boolean criteria

Return results with conveyance AND issuing in scope and content:

/api/informationobjects?sq0=conveyance+AND+issuing&sf0=scopeAndContent

Or, this could also be expressed as:

/api/informationobjects?sq0=conveyance&sf0=scopeAndContent&sq1=issuing&sf1=scopeAndContent

Return results with "conveyance issuing" (e.g. that exact string) in Scope and content:

/api/informationobjects?sq0="conveyance+issuing"&sf0=scopeAndContent

Return results with conveyance OR issuing in the scope and content field:

/api/informationobjects?sq0=conveyance+issuing&sf0=scopeAndContent

Return results with coffee OR chocolate in any field, AND (photo* OR picture* OR image*) in Extent and medium:

/api/informationobjects?sq0=chocolate&so1=or&sq1=coffee&so2=and&sq2=photo*+OR+picture*+OR+image*&sf2=extentAndMedium&topLod=0

An example query in the AtoM search interface

Filter parameters

The filter parameters below are the same as those found in the user interface as part of the Advanced search module, with some small variations (such as the skip parameter).

In many cases, the parameters expect internal IDs as the values for the parameters. Since these ids are automatically generated via mysql autonumerics (and thus subject to change over time), and because all terms in AtoM exist in user-editable taxonomies, it is not possible to list all available options for each parameter - it will depend on the data in your particular system. For some values, you can find a list of some of the default term IDs in lib/model/QubitTerm.php, or you can always perform an advanced search via the user interface, and then look at the resulting URL to see how the parameter has been passed - the same parameter and ID can be used in the API.

Tip

If you have access to the AtoM database, you could use a SQL query to return a list of terms and their IDs from a particular taxonomy. You will need to know the Taxonomy’s name, as listed in the user interface (via Manage > Taxonomies), and select a culture - the following example will use the Genre taxonomy, with the default terms returned in English (en). This query can easily be adapted by swapping in a different taxonomy name and culture value in the final parameters.

SELECT term.id, term_i18n.name FROM term LEFT JOIN term_i18n ON (term.id = term_i18n.id) WHERE term.taxonomy_id = (SELECT id FROM taxonomy_i18n WHERE culture = 'en' AND name = 'Genre') AND term_i18n.culture = 'en';

For some basic tips on using SQL to access AtoM’s database, see: Common AtoM database queries.

Filter parameters available for the Browse information object endpoint include:

  • sf_culture: ISO 639-1 language code for display. See Common parameter - i18n culture for more information on this parameter.
  • limit: The maximum number of information objects returned in a single response. Note that this parameter is limited by the Results per page global setting - you can use this parameter to limit the response further (e.g. request less results than the global setting), but increasing the limit parameter will not override the Results per page setting value.
    • Example - return only 5 results per request: /api/informationobjects?limit=5
  • skip: The amount of information objects skipped when returning the results. This parameter can be used to page results - for example, if the first response includes 10 results, then the following request can include a skip=10 parameter, which will skip the first 10 results and begin the response on the 11th. See the examples below.
    • Example - Skip the first 20 results: /api/informationobjects?skip=20
  • sort: This parameter offers the user options to sort the results. The options available are identical to those found in the Sort buttons for archival descriptions, and are described below. When the parameter is not included, the default sort order is whatever has been set in the Sort browser (users) setting. Otions:
    • identifier: sort results by reference code
    • alphabetic: sort results alphabetically. Note that in AtoM, alphabetic sorting uses ASCII sorting, not natural sorting - see this article for a bit more on the difference.
    • date: sorted by the internal startDate value, which should be ISO-8601 formatted (e.g. YYYY-MM-DD, YYYY-MM, or YYYY)
    • lastUpdated: sorted by most recent created or modified date
    • Example - sort by most recently created/modified: /api/informationobjects?sort=lastUpdated
  • topLod: Return only top level descriptions, or all descriptions. Equivalent to the top-level descriptions filter (which is on by default in the archival description browse page, but off by default on search results pages) in the user interface. When the parameter is not included, the default is to return all levels of description (e.g. topLod=0) Options:
    • 0: all results
    • 1: only top-level descriptions
    • Example - return only top-level descriptions: /api/informationobjects?topLod=1
  • onlyMedia: Return results with a linked digital object, or all descriptions. The default when this parameter is not included is to return all descriptions (e.g. onlyMedia=0). Options:
    • 0: Return all descriptions
    • 1: Return only descriptions with a linked digital object
    • Example - return descriptions with a digital object: /api/informationobjects?onlyMedia=1
  • copyrightStatus: Return records with a particular copyright status, based on PREMIS rights statements associated with the description. For more information on PREMIS rights in AtoM, see: Rights. Expects the internal ID of a particular term from the Copyright status taxonomy as the value.
    • Example - Return records with a PREMIS rights statement that indicates they are under copyright: /api/informationobjects?copyrightStatus=335
  • materialType: Relates to the Canadian RAD standard’s General material desgination (GMD) terms - terms are found in AtoM’s Material type taxonomy. Returns results limited to those linked to a particular GMD term. Expects the internal ID of a particular term from the Material type taxonomy as its value.
    • Example - Return records with a General material designation of “Moving images”: /api/informationobjects?materialType=264
  • languages: Equivalent to the languages facet in the user interface, which limits the results of a request to descriptions in a specific language. Expects an ISO 639-1 language code.
    • Example - return records in French: /api/informationobjects?languages=fr
  • levels: Return results limited to a specified level of description. Expects a term ID from the Levels of description taxonomy as the parameter value. Like all taxonomy terms in AtoM, these terms can be user-defined, so the IDs may vary.
    • Example - Return records with a level of description of “Series”: /api/informationobjects?levels=224
  • mediatypes: Filters results based on the digital object linked to the descriptions returned. Expects the internal id of the default terms used in the Media type taxonomy:
    • Example - Return records with a linked digital object that is an image: /api/informationobjects?mediatypes=136
  • repos: Returns records filtered by their association to a particular repository (e.g. an archival institution). Only really useful as a parameter in a multi-repository AtoM installation. Expects the internal repository ID as a value - AtoM does not include default archival institutions during installation, so these IDs will depend on user data.
    • Example - Return records associated with the Example Archives (example ID = 827): /api/informationobjects?repos=827
  • places: Returns records filtered by their association to a particular place access point. For more information on linking an archival description to an access point, see: Add an access point “on the fly” from an archival description. Expects the internal place term ID as a value - AtoM does not include default place terms during installation, so these IDs will depend on user data.
    • Example - Return records with “Example place” (example ID = 1123) as a linked place access point: /api/informationobjects?places=1123
  • subjects: Returns records filtered by their association to a particular subject access point. For more information on linking an archival description to an access point, see: Add an access point “on the fly” from an archival description. Expects the internal subject term ID as a value - AtoM does not include default subject terms during installation, so these IDs will depend on user data.
    • Example - Return records with “Example subject” (example ID = 945) as a linked subject access point: /api/informationobjects?subjects=945
  • genres: Returns records filtered by their association to a particular genre access point. For more information on linking an archival description to an access point, see: Add an access point “on the fly” from an archival description. Expects a specific ID for one of the terms in the Genre taxonomy as a value. AtoM includes 45 default terms at installation, taken from the US Library of Congress’ “Basic Genre Terms for Cultural Heritage Materials,” available at: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/techdocs/genre.html.
    • Example - Return records with “Photographs” (ID = 403) as a linked genre access point: /api/informationobjects?genres=403
  • creators: Returns records filtered by their association to particular actor (i.e. link to an authority record as a creator). Expects the internal actor ID as a value. AtoM does not include default authority records at installation, so these IDs will depend on user data.
    • Example - Return records linked to “Creator 1” (example ID = 1245) authority record as a creator: /api/informationobjects?creators=1245
  • names: Returns records filtered by their association to particular actor (i.e. link to an authority record as a name access point). Expects the internal actor ID as a value. AtoM does not include default authority records at installation, so these IDs will depend on user data.
    • Example - Return records linked to “Name 1” (example ID = 4432) authority record as a name access point: /api/informationobjects?names=4432
  • collection: Similar to the “Part of” facet in the user interface - see Using the “Part of” facet for further information. Returns records with a common top-level parent record. Expects the information object ID of the top-level parent record as its value. These IDs will depend on user data.
    • Example - Return descendent records of “Example fonds” (example ID = 972): /api/informationobjects?collection=972
  • startDate: Used to supply a start date for a date range query over the event dates associated with an information object. Expects an ISO-8601 formatted date string (YYYY-MM-DD) as its value. Queries against the internal, controlled start date value associated with an archival description (not the display date, which allows users to include expressions of approximation or uncertainty in the date display). For more information, see: Date range search filter.
    • Example - Return records with a start date of 1900 or later: /api/informationobjects?startDate=1900-01-01
  • endDate: Used to supply a end date for a date range query over the event dates associated with an information object. Expects an ISO-8601 formatted date string (YYYY-MM-DD) as its value. Queries against the internal, controlled end date value associated with an archival description (not the display date, which allows users to include expressions of approximation or uncertainty in the date display). For more information, see: Date range search filter.
    • Example - Return records with a end date of 1900 or earlier: /api/informationobjects?endDate=1900-01-01
  • rangeType: Associated with a date range search, this parameter determines the type of date range query applied - inclusive, or exact. For more information, see: Date range search filter. When this parameter is not included with a date range query, the default value is inclusive. Accepted parameter values:
    • exact: the start and end dates of descriptions returned must fall entirely within the date range entered.
    • inclusive: any description whose start or end dates touch or overlap the target date range will be returned. Note: this is labelled as “Overlapping” in the Advanced search user interface.
    • Example - Return records whose dates of creation fall exactly between 1900 and 1902: /api/informationobjects?startDate=1900-01-01&endDate=1902-12-31&rangeType=exact

Examples of using filter parameters in combination

Return results with a Genre access point of “Maps” created between 1900 and 1970, and return the results sorted by start date:

/api/informationobjects?genres=394&startDate=1900-01-01&endDate=1970-12-31&rangeType=exact&sort=date

Return any series-level records with a start date after 1900 from a particular repository:

/api/informationobjects?repos=471&levels=224&topLod=0&startDate=1900-01-01&rangeType=exact

Return top-level descriptions with a linked digital object that is textual:

/api/informationobjects?topLod=1&onlyMedia=1&mediatypes=137

Note

In this example, the onlyMedia parameter is not really needed - the mediatypes parameter will ensure that only results with textual digital objects linked will be returned. It has been included to demonstrate how to combine available parameters, and should return the same number of results as:

/api/informationobjects?topLod=1&mediatypes=137

Return Spanish descriptions with a digital object attached:

/api/informationobjects?languages=es&onlyMedia=1

Combining boolean and filter parameters - examples

Return results that have the word “west” in a place access point field:

/api/informationobjects?sq0=west&sf0=place&topLod=0

Return results that have NO place access point, created between 1950 and 1969:

/api/informationobjects?sq0=_missing_:places&startDate=1950-01-01&endDate=1969-12-31&rangeType=exact&topLod=0

Tip

You can use the following formula to search for missing/empty fields, or to broadly search for fields that have data in them - you need to know internal Elasticsearch field name to be able to do so:

Returns results with no data in the specified field

_missing_:field.name

Returns results with any data in the specified field

_exists_:field.name

This will work in the user interface if you enter it into the boolean query fields of the Advanced search panel, but you can also incorporate it into an API query, using the sq0 parameter:

Return descriptions with no data in the scope and content field in English:

/api/informationobjects?sq0=_missing_:i18n.en.scopeAndContent

The examples above and below this tip show this parameter used in an API query.

Return Series-level records with ANY subject access point AND tax* in the Scope and content field, sorted by most recently created or modified:

/api/informationobjects?sq0=_exists_:subjects&so1=and&sq1=tax*&sf1=scopeAndContent&levels=224&sort=lastUpdated

Return results with coffee OR chocolate in any field, with dates that match or overlap a range of January 1, 1990 - March 4, 2001, sorted by date:

/api/informationobjects?sq0=chocolate&so1=or&sq1=coffee&startDate=1990-01-01&endDate=2001-03-04&rangeType=inclusive&sort=date

Tip

The above query could also be expressed more simply by relying on the boolean operator and rangeType defaults, and therefore being able to exclude some parameters, like so:

/api/informationobjects?sq0=chocolate+coffee&startDate=1990-01-01&endDate=2001-03-04&sort=date

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