RiC-O Ontology Overview

Last updated: 2026-03-25 12:41:09

Records in Contexts — Ontology (RiC-O)

RiC-O is the OWL 2 ontology that implements the Records in Contexts Conceptual Model (RiC-CM). It provides a formal vocabulary for describing archival records, their creators, and the relationships between them as linked data.

Core Entities

Entity Description
RecordResource Base class for all archival record descriptions
RecordSet A group of records (fonds, series, collection)
Record A single archival record
RecordPart A component of a record
Instantiation A physical or digital manifestation
Agent A person, corporate body, or family
Activity An action performed by an agent
Place A geographic location
Date A temporal entity

Key Relations

  • rico:hasCreator — links a RecordResource to its creating Agent
  • rico:hasOrHadHolder — links to the holding institution
  • rico:describesOrDescribed — links a description to what it describes
  • rico:isAssociatedWith — general association between entities
  • rico:hasOrHadSubject — subject access points

Implementation in Heratio

Heratio implements RiC-O through its Fuseki triplestore integration. Archival descriptions are automatically synced to RDF triples following the RiC-O ontology, enabling SPARQL queries and graph visualization via the RiC Explorer.

The RiC Explorer is accessible at heratio.theahg.co.za/explorer.


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