Hans Henrich Booms аnd Archival Appraisal

Valentyna V. Bezdrabko. 

Abstract. The article is devoted to one of the most important and most complex tasks of archival studies – the theory of archival appraisal. Despite its representative scientific literature, its individual aspects remain poorly developed. One of the largest european archivists of the 20th century Hans Booms, has entered the history of developments in the archival appraisal. The main content of his theory is the need to consider complex approaches to determining the significance of documents, in particular the value framework of society, personality. He became the first who changed the official paradigm of archives to the public, recognized the usefulness of hermeneutics to find out the motives for creating documents without touching upon the relativity of objective and subjective reflection of reality in them. Hans Booms expanded the concept of “documentary heritage”. Its meaning goes beyond the traditional perception of a document that serves to provide managerial actions and implement relevant decisions, and covers all “texts” irrespective of their form of existence – written, printed, photographic, mechanical or automated. This greatly influenced the notion of “public heritage” and determined the well-known concept of collective memory. H. Booms deny the usual vision of the archive as a place of cumulating of documents that ensure the effectiveness of management in “active life”. Theoretical understanding of the archive was reflected in the definition of the unit of storage, which, in the conditions of the emergence of the newest information carriers, expands significantly. This is no longer just administrative documents, but also other objects that archivists may have nothing to do with the appearance and operation of which. Therefore, as Booms argued, archivists can be responsible for the practical scope of working with operational documents when it comes to administrative documentation. An important merit of G. Booms is that he holistically represented the natural inclination of the archivist – to create a documentary heritage.

Keywords: Hans Booms, Archival Education, Archivist, Archive, Archival Appraisal, Macro-Appraisal.

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