The notebooks document the relationships between the various objects in the collection and contain additional information that is often only partially or not at all available on the objects themselves. Friedrich Meister typically labelled the notebooks in the format: D[number] (e.g., D594). However, some notebooks were labelled differently, and in one case, there was no label at all (this was recorded as 's.n.'). Since content and purpose of the notebooks are not always clear from their titles and they were not consistently labelled, the notebooks have been categorised for better clarity.
Description of the notebook categories:
- Material catalogs (“Materialverzeichnisse”)
The sampling events (aka raw probes) are listed in sequential order in the material catalogs D594 and D595. Each line begins with the probe number on the left, followed by the number of replicates indicated in Roman numerals. The position of these Roman numerals further denote the container of the respective replicates (this information is missing for later probes). Next, the sampling place and date are provided. In some cases, the collector is named, but the collectors are primarily recorded in the site directories. Finally, the identifiers (“Kennzeichnung”) of the corresponding microscopic slides are shown on the right-hand side; however, these assignments are often incomplete.
In the bookmarks, the lowest and highest probe numbers are recorded for each page.
- Site directories (“Standortverzeichnisse”)
In site directories 17 and 18, the sampling events are organised by geographical origin. Directory 17 primarily lists probes from Switzerland, while directory 18 focuses on those from abroad. In addition, directory 17 includes a list of collectors with their abbreviations (this information is often missing in D594/D595). Otherwise, the information is largely redundant and often incomplete compared to the data in material catalogs D594/D595.
In the bookmarks, both the geographical regions and the range of probe numbers are recorded on each page.
- Analyses booklets (“Analysenhefte”)
In the analyses booklets, the microscopic slides are listed in sequential order, with the taxa analysed by Friedrich Meister recorded for each slide. Either a single taxon is noted, or a list of taxa assigned to one or more slides is provided. In the former, the taxon refers to either an individual specimen (single shells of a taxon) or a species that dominates the slide. A list of multiple taxa is referred to as a mixed preparation.
The probe number and some collection details are often noted at the top of each page. In some cases, however, sampling event details are only given for individual slides, which is why slides from multiple sampling events may be listed on the same page. It is important to note that the order of the slides does not correspond to the sequence of sampling events, and that slides and analyses from the same sampling event may have been created at different timepoints.
In the bookmarks, the lowest and highest slide number are indicated for each page.
- Photo indices (“Dia/Fotoverzeichnisse”)
The photo indices primarily contain information on the negative photographic plates, listed sequentially. For each entry, the taxon is noted, and in some cases, the place of discovery and/or the associated microscopic slide. Additional information includes references to publications, the existence of a positive, and details about the size of the shells as well as the format and magnification of the photograph. This data may pertain both to the photographic plates and the related reprints.
It is important to note that the numbering of the positives initially corresponded to the numbering of the negatives. However, over time, positives and negatives were assigned different numbers. In such cases, the number of the negative is typically provided alongside that of the corresponding positive.
In the bookmarks, the lowest and highest plate numbers are indicated for each page.