A STUDY OF THE THEORY OF APPRAISAL FOR SELECTION By ...

Jenkinson concludes that "Impartiality is a gift which
results from the first part of our definition of Archives. "20
That is, the production of unbiased records is a logical
consequence of the creation process, by which the creator is
guaranteed credible and reliable documents, and from which
transactions can be implemented, regulated and proved. If,
therefore, the archival nature of records is preserved, the
records will logically have the capacity to provide impartial
information to all potential users on a wide variety of subjects
regardless of the purpose for which the archives were created or
the purpose of the research. Jenkinson adds the common sense
proviso that meaning, of course, is bound to the significance of
the administrative context in which the documents were created:
"Provided, then, that the student understands [the documents']
administrative significance they cannot tell him anything but the
truth."21
Jenkinson proceeds in his definition of archives from the
creation process to preservation and custody. Archival documents
must not only have been created or used in the course of an
administrative transaction, but also have been preserved in the
custody of those responsible for the transaction, for their own
information. That is, documents become archival during the
creation process at the point at which "they are definitely set
aside for preservation, tacitly adjudged worthy of being kept" by
20 Ibid, 12.
21 Ibid.
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