Omeka: Add items and collections

Items are the most basic building block of an Omeka site.

An item is a photo, document, or any other single digital object you want to display in your exhibit. 

Items contain metadata about the object, and can have uploaded files attached to them. Although images are the most common, there are many possible files types that work in Omeka.

Click Manage Site from your Dashboard page, then Add a new item.

When creating or editing an Item, there are four main tabs used to modify the Item:

• The “Dublin Core” tab is where you describe the item's information: title, description, creator, dates, and other useful information. These fields are called metadata, which is information that defines what the object is, describes what’s interesting or useful to know about it, and helps researchers find it online. You can choose which fields are necessary to describe the object, and leave the other fields blank.
• The “Item Type Metadata” tab allows you to select the type of object and gives you an additional set of fields to fill in that are specific to that type: format, dimensions, etc.
• The “Files” tab allows you to upload images or other digital files associated with the object.
• The “Tags” tab allows you to add tags, which are additional descriptive terms you can add to group Items and help searchers.

Check the Public box to make the item visible on your site.

If you have already created collections (see below), you can add the item to the correct collection by choosing it from the drop-down menu.

When you are happy with the item, then click the green Add Item button to save.

Collections are groups of items you wish to display together in the same section of your exhibit. Each item can only be included in one collection at a time.

Create a collection by clicking Collections on the left menu, then Add a Collection.

Dublin Core is the name of a metadata standard—a commonly used set of terms used to describe items.

It's used in many other applications besides Omeka.