Explore the RiC model - every entity, attribute and relation, plain and navigable. Open the model navigator ↗
Records in Contexts · RiC-CM 1.0 / RiC-O 1.1 · open & free

Understand records in context.

OpenRiC is an open, free way to describe the records an archive holds - together with the people and organisations behind them, the activities that created them, and the places and dates that tie them together. Explore the model, browse a real collection, or build on the specification.

In plain language: RiC (Records in Contexts) is the International Council on Archives' model that brings the four older standards - ISAD(G), ISAAR(CPF), ISDF and ISDIAH - together into one connected picture of records and their context. OpenRiC is a free, open way to publish and explore that picture - a shared contract, like IIIF for images, that any archival system can implement.

New - the modelling wizard

Not sure how to model something in RiC? The wizard walks you through real decisions step by step - why each entity fits or doesn't - and builds the model live. First scenario: a magnetic tape with mixed-provenance tracks.

Choose your path

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For archivists & researchers

Explore the RiC conceptual model entity by entity, see how a record connects to its creators, functions, places and dates, and browse a real archival collection. No technical knowledge needed.

Start exploring →
Model navigator · plain-language guide · browse real data
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For developers & implementers

Read the specification, try the API, run the conformance probe, and build a conformant OpenRiC server or client. A clean HTTP contract over RiC-CM / RiC-O.

Read the docs →
Spec · API · JSON-LD · SHACL · OpenAPI · OAI-PMH · conformance

🏛️ For institutions & decision-makers — a 3-minute, non-technical brief on why RiC and OpenRiC matter, and what adopting them means for your archive. Read the brief →