Collection Inventory and Valuation Record
Itemise a collection properly, so that identification, acquisition and any valuation exist somewhere other than in your head.
CV-01 1 page
Collecting and valuables · CV-07
Book Collection Catalogue Sheet
A free printable book catalogue — author, title, edition, publisher and year, with condition, whether it is signed, the shelf position and who has borrowed it.
Download Free · no sign-up
One page. Choose your paper size — both versions are laid out identically, so neither one gets shrunk to fit.
Print it and write on it
Fill it in type and save
The fillable versions have real form fields — open them in any PDF reader, type into them and save. Printing help.
What this sheet is for
Hold a personal library as a list rather than a wall of spines, and see at a glance which books are out on loan and with whom.
Who it is for
Book collectors, people with a large home library, and small reading rooms or staff libraries that lend books out informally.
How to use it
- Take edition and publisher from the title page rather than the cover.
- Say in the condition column what is actually wrong — foxing, a torn jacket, a cracked hinge.
- Mark signed copies as you go, and keep any letter of authenticity with the book's file.
- Write the borrower and date in the lending column as the book leaves, and strike it through when it comes back.
- Keep one sheet per shelf or room so the paper matches the shelves.
What is on the sheet
One page, top to bottom:
Printed under the title: A catalogue of the books you own — author, title, edition, publisher and year, with condition, whether it is signed, where it sits and who has borrowed it.
Fill the lending column as it goes. The lending column is the one people wish they had kept. Write the borrower and the date in it as the book leaves the house, and strike it through when the book comes back — a blank in that column is the only reliable way to find what is still out.
Write-on lines: Collection or room · Owner · Sheet
Table, 14 rows: Author · Title · Edition · Publisher · Year · Condition · Signed · Shelved at · Lent to / date
Questions
How do I tell which edition I have?
The title page and the copyright page behind it carry the edition and printing information, and they often disagree with the jacket. Copy what those pages say, word for word, rather than deciding what the book is.
Why is there a lending column on an inventory?
Because lent books are the commonest way a private library shrinks. A column with a name and a date in it turns a vague memory into something you can act on.
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Also in the resources library
The same subject, with a version you can fill in on screen.
