I run a school library using the abridged version of Dewey, and I cannot work out how to classify a work on English history that covers more than the given periods. Do I classify a work on 1500-1700 under 942.05 (1485-1603) or 942.06 (1603-1714) for example? I would appreciate any guidance, as I am a bookseller-turned-library co-ordinator, and therefore lacking this type of expertise!

When a book covers more than one historical period, follow the instructions given under "More Than One Subject in the Same Discipline" (paragraph 5.7) in the Introduction (pages xxiii-xlvi in Abridged Edition 14, and from the Show Options menu list item in Abridged WebDewey). In your case, the work covers two historical periods of English history that are assigned the following DDC numbers: 942.05 and 942.06. Because both periods are of equal importance and the periods together do not approximate-the-whole of English history, the first-of-two rule provides that the book is classed in 942.05--the number coming first in the schedule.

Submitted by: Thanks to Penny Swan, St Luke's School, Redbourn, England, for submitting this question.
Last revised: 05 July 2005