The catalogue in numbers: from “Flora Marchica” (1663) to the 2020s

A catalogue export is not just raw material for a new system. It is also a portrait of the library that people rarely see as a whole. We counted what lies in the 6,153 records of the open MPT01 catalogue.

When the books were published

The oldest publication with a recognisable year is “Flora Marchica”, 1663, call number Ja 11. Next to it stand floras and botanical treatises of the 18th century. The bulk of the collection dates from the second half of the 20th century.

Where the books are

Almost a third of the items have no collection code. That didn’t matter in the old catalogue, but for a new system it raises a question: which loan rule applies to them? For now they default to home loan.

Languages and subjects

Only 2,825 records state a language. Among them: English 1,947, German 714, Latin 81, French 61. The most frequent main headings are Botany (almost 400 records), Plants (about 150) and Genetics (about 80) — revealing the botanical and biological core of the collection.

What the gaps say

• 3,328 records without a language — the language filter can’t see them.
• 242 records without a year and 176 with a non-standard year: “19XX”, a volume range, a page count.
• 117 records without a call number, and as many without items.
• 121 records with a duplicate ISBN — duplicates or volumes of one edition.