> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://dms.dzaleka.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Heritage Item Types
> Descriptions and usage guidelines for the 10 allowed values of the DMS type field.
The `type` field categorises every DMS record into one of 10 heritage item types. The value must exactly match one of the enum strings defined in `schema/dms.json`.
Oral histories, personal narratives, and written accounts.
Photographs and photographic images.
Administrative records, reports, letters, and certificates.
Sound recordings, music, and audio interviews.
Video recordings and films.
Documentation of community events and gatherings.
Maps and spatial representations of the camp.
Paintings, murals, drawings, crafts, sculptures, and installations.
Cultural, historical, or community locations and landmarks.
Poetry, spoken word, and literary works.
***
## story
Oral histories, personal narratives, and written accounts. Use this type for first-person accounts of displacement, arrival, daily life, or community experience — whether recorded verbally and transcribed, or composed as written prose.
In the JSON-LD context, `story` maps to `schema:Article`, `foaf:Document`, and `bibo:Document`.
```json story-type.json theme={null}
{
"id": "b3e7c8a1-4d5f-6e7a-8b9c-0d1e2f3a4b5c",
"title": "Journey to Dzaleka: A Story of Hope",
"type": "story",
"description": "An oral history account of a Congolese family's journey from Bukavu to Dzaleka Refugee Camp in 2015.",
"language": "en"
}
```
**Suggested creator roles:** `narrator`, `author`, `interviewer`, `interviewee`, `editor`, `translator`
**Common formats:** `text/plain`, `text/html`, `application/pdf`
***
## photo
Photographs and photographic images, including documentary photography, portraits, and community life imagery. Use this type for still images captured by a camera, whether digital or digitised from film.
In the JSON-LD context, `photo` maps to `schema:Photograph` and `foaf:Image`.
```json photo-type.json theme={null}
{
"id": "a1f2e3d4-5b6c-7d8e-9f0a-1b2c3d4e5f6a",
"title": "Market Day at Dzaleka",
"type": "photo",
"description": "A photograph capturing a busy market day at Dzaleka Refugee Camp, showing vendors and community members along the main market corridor.",
"language": "en"
}
```
**Suggested creator roles:** `photographer`
**Common formats:** `image/jpeg`, `image/png`, `image/tiff`
***
## document
Administrative records, official reports, letters, registration forms, and certificates. Use this type for text-based items that originated as institutional or formal paperwork — either produced within the camp's administrative structures or by organisations operating there.
In the JSON-LD context, `document` maps to `schema:DigitalDocument`, `foaf:Document`, and `bibo:Document`.
```json document-type.json theme={null}
{
"id": "e5f6a7b8-c9d0-1e2f-3a4b-5c6d7e8f9a0b",
"title": "Community School Registration Records, 2018",
"type": "document",
"description": "Student registration records from the Dzaleka community school for the academic year 2018, listing enrolled students, grades, and teacher assignments.",
"language": "en"
}
```
**Suggested creator roles:** `author`, `editor`, `contributor`, `translator`
**Common formats:** `application/pdf`, `text/plain`, `image/jpeg` (scanned document)
***
## audio
Sound recordings including music performances, audio interviews, oral testimonies, radio broadcasts, and spoken-word content not classified as poetry. Use this type when the primary medium is audio, even if a transcript also exists.
In the JSON-LD context, `audio` maps to `schema:AudioObject` and `bibo:AudioDocument`.
```json audio-type.json theme={null}
{
"id": "d4e5f6a7-b8c9-0d1e-2f3a-4b5c6d7e8f9a",
"title": "Traditional Songs of the Great Lakes Region",
"type": "audio",
"description": "A recording of traditional songs performed by members of the Dzaleka cultural group, featuring songs from Burundi, Rwanda, and the DRC.",
"language": "rw"
}
```
**Suggested creator roles:** `recorder`, `interviewer`, `interviewee`, `narrator`, `contributor`
**Common formats:** `audio/mpeg`, `audio/wav`, `audio/ogg`
***
## video
Video recordings, documentary films, and filmed events. Use this type when the primary medium is moving image, whether produced professionally or as community documentation.
In the JSON-LD context, `video` maps to `schema:VideoObject` and `bibo:AudioVisualDocument`.
```json video-type.json theme={null}
{
"id": "c3d4e5f6-a7b8-9c0d-1e2f-3a4b5c6d7e8f",
"title": "World Refugee Day Celebration 2024 — Highlights",
"type": "video",
"description": "A highlights reel from the World Refugee Day celebration held at Dzaleka in June 2024, featuring performances, speeches, and community activities.",
"language": "en"
}
```
**Suggested creator roles:** `recorder`, `editor`, `contributor`
**Common formats:** `video/mp4`, `video/webm`, `video/ogg`
***
## event
Documentation of community events, gatherings, celebrations, and public meetings. Use this type for records that describe or represent an event that occurred, rather than the artefact produced at the event (use the appropriate type for the artefact itself).
In the JSON-LD context, `event` maps to `schema:Event` and `bibo:Event`.
```json event-type.json theme={null}
{
"id": "f7a8b9c0-d1e2-3f4a-5b6c-7d8e9f0a1b2c",
"title": "World Refugee Day Celebration 2024",
"type": "event",
"description": "Annual World Refugee Day celebration held at Dzaleka Refugee Camp on 20 June 2024, featuring cultural performances, sports activities, and community speeches.",
"language": "en"
}
```
**Suggested creator roles:** `organizer`, `contributor`, `recorder`
**Common formats:** `text/plain`, `application/pdf`, `text/html`
***
## map
Maps and spatial representations of the camp or its surroundings. Use this type for cartographic materials including hand-drawn camp layouts, GIS-produced maps, and spatial planning documents.
In the JSON-LD context, `map` maps to `schema:Map` and `foaf:Document`.
```json map-type.json theme={null}
{
"id": "a9b0c1d2-e3f4-5a6b-7c8d-9e0f1a2b3c4d",
"title": "Dzaleka Camp Layout and Infrastructure Map, 2022",
"type": "map",
"description": "A spatial map of Dzaleka Refugee Camp showing residential sections, water points, health facilities, schools, and market areas as of 2022.",
"language": "en"
}
```
**Suggested creator roles:** `author`, `contributor`
**Common formats:** `image/png`, `image/svg+xml`, `application/pdf`, `application/geo+json`
***
## artwork
Visual artworks including paintings, murals, drawings, handmade crafts, sculptures, and installations. Use this type for items whose primary value lies in their aesthetic or artistic expression rather than their informational content.
In the JSON-LD context, `artwork` maps to `schema:VisualArtwork` and `foaf:Image`.
```json artwork-type.json theme={null}
{
"id": "b0c1d2e3-f4a5-6b7c-8d9e-0f1a2b3c4d5e",
"title": "Child Early Marriage Awareness Mural",
"type": "artwork",
"description": "A public mural painted on the wall of the Dzaleka community centre raising awareness about child early marriage, created by the Tumaini Festival art programme.",
"language": "en"
}
```
**Suggested creator roles:** `artist`, `muralist`, `sculptor`, `contributor`
**Common formats:** `image/jpeg`, `image/png`, `image/tiff`
***
## site
Cultural, historical, or community locations and landmarks within or associated with the camp. Use this type for records that document a place itself — its history, significance, and physical characteristics — rather than an item found there.
In the JSON-LD context, `site` maps to `schema:Place` and `schema:LandmarksOrHistoricalBuildings`.
```json site-type.json theme={null}
{
"id": "c1d2e3f4-a5b6-7c8d-9e0f-1a2b3c4d5e6f",
"title": "Dzaleka Health Centre",
"type": "site",
"description": "The primary health facility serving residents of Dzaleka Refugee Camp, operating since the camp's establishment and providing medical care to over 50,000 registered refugees.",
"language": "en"
}
```
**Suggested creator roles:** `contributor`, `curator`
**Common formats:** `text/plain`, `application/pdf`, `image/jpeg`
***
## poem
Poetry, spoken-word pieces, and literary works. Use this type for items whose form is explicitly poetic — including written verse, performed spoken word, and song lyrics presented as literary works.
In the JSON-LD context, `poem` maps to `schema:CreativeWork` and `bibo:Document`.
```json poem-type.json theme={null}
{
"id": "b3c4d5e6-f7a8-9b0c-1d2e-3f4a5b6c7d8e",
"title": "Home Is a Word I Carry",
"type": "poem",
"description": "A poem reflecting on the experience of displacement and the meaning of home for refugees living in Dzaleka. Written in English with phrases in Swahili.",
"language": "en"
}
```
**Suggested creator roles:** `poet`, `author`, `narrator`
**Common formats:** `text/plain`, `text/html`, `audio/mpeg` (spoken word recording)
***
## Type selection guide
Use `story`. The transcript is the primary artefact — the oral narrative is what the record describes. If the audio recording also needs its own record, create a separate `audio` record and link them using the `relation` field.
Use `artwork`. The subject of the photograph is the artwork. If the photograph itself is the heritage item (e.g., documentary photography of daily life), use `photo`.
Use `document` if it is an official report or administrative record. Use `story` if it is a personal or community narrative. Use `event` if the record's primary purpose is to document the event itself.
Use `audio`. If you also have sheet music or lyrics as a separate document, create a second record of type `document` or `poem` and link both records using the `relation` field.