Foundational Document — F-2025-0009
Scope & Custodial Policy
Scope of the Archive
The Diné, Janeth & Fandleran Reliquary is a privately held archival collection established to identify, preserve, and document artifacts whose provenance, production circumstances, or historical context warrant formal reconstruction and long-term custodial stewardship.
The scope of the archive is intentionally selective. Materials considered for inclusion typically demonstrate one or more of the following characteristics:
- Documented rarity, discontinuity, or atypical production history
- Evidentiary value requiring contextual clarification or correction
- Cultural, historical, or archival significance beyond commercial valuation
- A demonstrable risk of misrepresentation, loss, or historical obscurity
The Reliquary does not seek to function as a comprehensive catalog of any single domain. Items acquired solely for speculative, decorative, or short-term commercial purposes fall outside the scope of this archive unless subsequent research establishes broader documentary relevance.
Scope determinations are made internally and may evolve as additional evidence, contextual clarity, or historical understanding emerges.
Custodial Stewardship
The Reliquary serves as a custodian of materials entrusted to its care. Custodial stewardship encompasses preservation, documentation, contextual research, and the maintenance of authoritative records over time.
Custody does not imply immediate public disclosure. Artifacts held by the Reliquary may reside in varying stages of research, verification, and archival preparation. Some materials may remain permanently private due to custodial considerations, evidentiary sensitivity, or long-term preservation priorities.
All materials are maintained in accordance with preservation practices appropriate to their format and condition. Records produced by the Reliquary are versioned, retained, and preserved with an emphasis on durability, traceability, and future interpretability.
Access & Public Disclosure
The public website of the Reliquary functions as a selective index rather than a complete inventory. Only materials for which sufficient verification and contextual documentation have been completed are considered for public publication.
The absence of a record from public view does not indicate the absence of custody. Publication cadence is intentionally measured, and disclosure decisions are guided by archival readiness rather than external demand or chronology.
Public-facing provenance packets are preserved as issued and are not revised once published, except to correct demonstrable factual errors.
Statement of Intent
This Scope & Custodial Policy exists to provide contextual clarity regarding the boundaries, responsibilities, and disclosure philosophy of the Reliquary. It is not intended as a guarantee of acquisition, publication, or access, but as a framework for principled archival stewardship over time.