Classification Scheme
Our classification scheme
The Whipple Library uses an in-house alphabetical scheme to arrange our open shelf books. Each subject is assigned a letter, which may contain subcategories of more specific topics and/or time periods.
We strongly recommend browsing the shelves pertaining to your areas of interest in order to gain a sense of what books we have in our collection and what work has been done in the field.
Please ask a member of Library staff if you need assistance or guidance navigating our open shelves and locating specific books.
The following table summarises the thematic categories we use and indicates which level houses each section:
Using classmarks
Every book in our modern collection will contain a classmark on the book's spine. These codes function as co-ordinates that dictate where each book is located on our shelves, so understanding how they work can help you to find specific books quickly.
The first line of our classmarks contain a capital letter, which may be followed by another capital letter and/or a number. The first lette indicates the subject of the book, as per the classification table above. A second letter specifies a subsection of that subject. A number represents the time period addressed in books on historical subjects.
The second line contains three letters, which are the first three letters of the author's or editor's surname. Note that works by multiple authors or with multiple editors will be classified by the first listed contributor. Biographies and books about the work of specific figures will have the first three letters of the subject's surname on the second line and the first three letters of the primary contributor's surname on the third line.
The last line is the numeration of each book with that specific classmark in our collection. Multiple copies of the same book will have a lowercase letter after the number. Works in multiple volumes will be divided using decimal points and letters.
