One Sight of a Herbarium — Taiwan and the UK-臺英植物標本館見聞(6)

* Curation-庋用/策展

Do you remember how to find specimens from chapters 2 and 3. This time, let’s talk about how to put them back. Generally, the process is simply the reverse, but when a scientific name changes, new specimens arrive, or cupboard space runs out, it becomes less straightforward. From a staff perspective, our work is more often about ‘filing specimens’ into cupboard than finding them. These tasks fall under what is broadly called ‘curation’, encompassing the care, preservation, and management of the collection, which is also why the head of a herbarium is usually called a ‘Curator’.

Let’s walk through the curation process step by step~

還記得第二和第三回提到怎麼取得標本嗎？這次要談談怎麼放回去。正常情況來說標本怎麼來就怎麼放回去就好，但若是遇到學名更動、新進標本或是櫃內空間不足的問題，就沒那麼直覺了。就我們館員的實務來說，比起找標本，我們更常做的是是把處理好的標本「放定位」。這些管理維護的工作統稱為 Curation，涵蓋照顧、保存、歸檔等概念，也因此標本館的館長才叫「Curator」。

接著來一步步看怎麼做歸檔吧～

Specimen curation work. 標本分類作業。

1. Initial Sorting-標本的初步分類

• Kew-More Concentrated Taxons-分類群較集中：

Base on Kew’s three number systems described in earlier chapters (family number, genus number, and geographical area number), I sorted specimens from broad to specific that first by family code, then further by genus and area. Kew is really huge, so in practice the specimens I received had usually already been pre-organised into a single family by other staff . Even so, the volume was still considerable.

As shown below, each pile of sheet is arranged so that a small part of the lower edge is visible that allows their three numbers to be scanned at a glance during initial sorting. The red edged folders are worth noting, these contain type specimens, which I will describe next time.

參照前幾回提到Kew的三個編號系統(科別號、屬別號、地區號)，我會從大範圍到小範圍分作堆，先以科別號為一堆，再進一步依不同屬和地區細分。Kew真的很大，所以實際上我拿到手的標本通常已經由別人整理成單一科別了，但份量依然相當可觀。

另外，從下圖可以看到每一小堆標本都露出一些下緣，這是為了方便在初步分類的時候可以直接掃視其三個編號。其中比較特別的紅框標本夾，裡面放的是模式標本，下回再來細說～

Initial specimens sorting at Kew. Kew標本初步分類。

• HAST-More Varied Taxons-分類群較廣：

At HAST, I largely followed my experience at Kew, starting by sorting specimens into family piles. However, since the specimens on hand tend to be are more mixed, there were often far more families to sort through. I only broke things down further to genus level when a particular family had a notably large volume. As for collection area, HAST primarily holds Taiwanese specimens and foreign material makes up only a small proportion, a little extra attention was all it took.

Moreover, since HAST doesn’t use an additional number system, I exposed the label at the right-bottom corner of each piles so I could check the family names quickly.

*The working photos from both herbaria capture the difference in scale: Kew has a spacious work area with many tables; while HAST has just a single bench against wall, though this is quite typical of most herbaria.

在HAST我大致沿用在Kew的經驗，同樣先依科別分推。不過由於手上的標本通常比較混亂，在HAST分出來的科就比較多樣；而只當某一科的標本量特中大時，我才會進一步細分不同屬。採集地的部分，由於HAST主要收藏台灣標本，國外標本只佔少數，我只要稍加留意就沒問題了。

再者，HAST沒有另外的標號系統，我會把每疊標本右下角的標籤露出來，方便快速確認科別。

*從兩間標本館的工作照可以直接感受到空間規模的差異：Kew的工作區相當寬敞，桌子也多；HAST就只有一側靠牆的桌子，不過這其實是多數標本館的常態。

Initial specimens sorting at HAST. HAST標本初步分類。

2. Filing-歸檔作業

Filing follows initial sorting, and the process is essentially the reverse of what was described in chapter 2 and 3. Furthermore, new folders sometimes need to be created: at HAST, a new species without an existing folder requires one to be made; at Kew, the more common scenario is that an original folder has become too~ full and needs to be split.

標本初步分類完之後就可以進行歸檔了，步驟大致如同第二、三回的反向操作。比較特別的是，有時候需要新增標本夾：在HAST，新收納的物種若沒有專屬的夾，就需要新建一個；而Kew比較常遇到的情況是原有的夾太～滿了，需要拆分出新的空間。

Filing work. 歸檔作業。

3. New folders-新增標本夾

• Kew-Relieving Overfull Folders-標本夾解壓：

Overpacked folders can cause some irreversible damage to specimens, but checking every folder across hundreds of year of collections is impossible. In practice, we only ‘ease’ the tension when we happen to encounter an overfull folder during filing. Because a single species can end up spread across several folders, each folder cover is labelled with the family name, genus name, and area, plus a small notation in the lower-right corner indicating which folder it is, such as 1/7 and 3 of 5.

Kew is very particular about different labels require different tools: Genus names are written with an archival pen, while species names or folder numbers are noted in HB pencil.

標本夾過滿會對標本造成不可逆的損害，但我們不可能逐一檢查這幾百年累積的館藏，通常只會在歸檔過程中，將遇到過於緊繃的標本夾順手「舒緩」。可想而知，一個種的夾可能會有好幾份，因此封面上除了標示科名、屬名、地區之外，右下角還會小標第幾份，如1/7、3 of 5。

Kew真的很講究，不同標示甚至要求用不同的筆書寫：屬名用簽字筆、種小名或份數用HB鉛筆。

Left: Overpacked folders. Right: The label on lower edge of a folder. 左圖：標本夾太滿。右圖：種套下緣的標示。

• HAST-Folder for New Taxons’ -新分類群的夾：

Most Taiwanese species are already stored in the collection, so new folders are usually needed for new species from other areas. Recently, for example, I’ve been handling the new Asteraceae specimens collected from America . Unlike Kew, HAST ideally avoids handwriting on folders, preferring printed labels instead (handwritten text is harder to read and tends to fade over time). That’s why we need more handcraft work: acid-free stickers are applied and fixed with acid-free white glue, with family and/or genus name pasted to new folder.

*Although foreign specimens at HAST are generally sorted only to genus level, taxa that past herbarium staff researched in, such as Begoniaceae and Asteraceae, are still arranged to species level.

台灣的物種通常都已收錄過了，所以需要新增標本夾的情形多半是其他地區新收錄的物種，像是最近很常來收到採自美州、沒看過的菊科標本。和Kew不一樣的是，HAST 理想上不在標本夾上手寫，而是改用貼標籤的方式（手寫字不易判讀，時間久了也容易糊掉）。因此接著是一連串的手工藝環節，使用無酸貼紙與無酸白膠加固，為每份新標本夾貼上科名和/或屬名。

*雖然之前提過在HAST的國外標本只分到屬的層級，但若是標本館前人專門研究的分類群，如秋海棠科和菊科，還是會細分到種層級（如下圖）。

Left: Pasting labels onto new Asteraceae folders for specimens from America. Right: The acid-free stickers used in herbarium, a common choice among many archive institutions. 左圖：為新收錄的美洲菊科標本夾貼標籤。右圖：館內使用的專用無酸貼紙，也是許多檔案機構的通用選擇。