Contribute research

Tell us we are wrong

Corrections are the most valuable thing this project can receive, and the ones that sting are the most valuable of all. You do not need a title, an affiliation or an introduction, and you do not need to be polite about it.

What kind of contribution is this? *

What does it affect?

A claim id, a question id, a census row, or just the name of the page. If you are not sure, leave it — we will find it.

What should the record say instead? *

Plain language is fine. You do not need to be certain, and a partial answer that narrows a question is a contribution.

Sources

A URL, a catalogue reference, a measurement you took, an impression you have examined. A correction with a source can be acted on the same week; one without becomes an open question instead, which is still useful.

Your name *

Email *

Used to reply to you and for nothing else.

Affiliation

Optional. It is not a requirement to contribute, and evidence is assessed on what it is rather than on who sent it.

ORCID

Optional. If you give one, credit attaches to you rather than to a name that happens to match yours.

Anything to disclose?

If you have a commercial interest in this object or in impressions of this plate, say so. It does not disqualify a contribution; it is recorded alongside it.

I have the right to share what I am sending, and I am content for the factual content to be incorporated into the record under CC0. *

You keep the copyright in any substantial text or image you supply; the licence you grant for those is recorded with the contribution.

Nothing you send is published without a person reading it first. What we do with it is set out in the privacy policy.

What happens next

1. Acknowledged within a week.
2. Assessed against the evidence hierarchy — where does this sit relative to what the record currently rests on?
3. If accepted, the affected claim is superseded, not overwritten. The old claim stays in the record, marked as superseded.
4. Logged with its reason and your name.
5. If declined, we say why in writing — and if the lead was reasonable, it is published in the rejected-hypotheses record anyway.

If you would rather not be named