Collector’s Notebook

The Notebook is a working reference: observations that repeat across real artifacts—materials, marks, pattern families, and the boundaries of responsible attribution. It is intentionally practical, and intentionally restrained.

⁂ How to use this section: Treat each entry as a lens. It can strengthen or weaken a claim, but it rarely “proves” a ship. When a conclusion outruns the evidence, the Notebook’s job is to pull it back to what the record can support.

Start Here

If you are new to the project, begin with Ocean Liner Collecting: A Curated Guide. If you are evaluating a specific object, browse Reference Objects for grounded examples.

Notebook Sections

These are the core lanes the Notebook will expand over time. Each section is built from repeatable signals—things you can check, compare, and re-check—rather than story-driven claims.

Materials & Manufacturing

What materials can (and cannot) tell you: construction methods, finishing, wear patterns, and the limits of “period feel.”

Marks, Stamps & Labels

Maker’s marks, date marks, inventory numbers, and paper tags—what they mean, why they mislead, and how to read them conservatively.

Patterns & Motifs

Pattern families, repeated decorative language, and why “it looks like Titanic” is often a category error rather than evidence.

Provenance Pitfalls

The common failure points: “came from” stories, auction descriptions, estate narratives, and why chains of custody break.

Attribution Boundaries

Where responsible claims usually stop: line-level certainty, period-level certainty, and the disciplined use of “unknown.”

Editorial standard: Entries are written to be checked. If a claim can’t be independently verified, it will be labeled as inference, tradition, or uncertainty—not upgraded into fact.