Any term in TGM II may be subdivided in order to indicate certain information and to subarrange files of headings. The MARC format provides for three types of subdivisions:

          -- general (subfield x)
          -- chronological (subfield y)
          -- geographic (subfield z).  

Subdivisions need not be used with all terms, nor at all times, but a consistent practice should be developed. Although no order for these subfields is specified, the following pattern is recommended both for manual and automated catalogs: [thesaurus term]--[general subdivision]--[geographic subdivision]--[date subdivision]. Nationality and presence of color are general subdivisions that are frequently used. A suggested sequence of subdivisions has been used in most of these examples:

(1) nationality; (2) color; (3) date.

And, when reproductions are being described, this sequence is suggested:

(1) nationality; (2) date; (3) reproductions; (4) color of reproduction.

Examples: LITHOGRAPHS--1850-1900.
          LITHOGRAPHS--FRENCH--1850-1900.
          LITHOGRAPHS--FRENCH--COLOR--1850-1900.
          LITHOGRAPHS--FRENCH--1850-1900--REPRODUCTIONS--COLOR. 

Two general subdivisions (COLOR and HAND-COLORED) may be used with physical characteristic terms, whether or not those terms imply coloring. The subdivision COLOR refers to material in which color is an inherent part of the original creation. The subdivision HAND-COLORED refers to material to which color is applied in a later stage, by hand, stencil, or other method. When in doubt as to whether a piece is hand-colored, simply use COLOR. (This practice replaces the first edition's distinction of COLOR and COLORED.)

Examples: ALBUMEN PRINTS--HAND-COLORED--1860-1870.
          ENGRAVINGS--COLOR--1800-1900.
          CHROMOLITHOGRAPHS--GERMAN--COLOR--1890.

The adjectival form of a country's name may also be used as a general subdivision to draw attention to the artist's nationality or the country in which the work was produced.

Examples: POSTERS--FRENCH--1700-1750.
          ENGRAVINGS--MEXICAN--HAND-COLORED--1900-1910.
          PRINTS--AMERICAN--1900-1910.

Use the name of the country or U.S. state, possibly with a city name, to draw attention to the local place of publication or manufacture.

Example: BROADSIDES--RHODE ISLAND--PROVIDENCE--1820.

Possible principles to follow are to subdivide by nationality in all cases; to subdivide by nationality when the material is unpublished (and by country of production when published); or to subdivide by both facets.

Example: TRAVEL SKETCHES--JAPANESE--1900.
         STEREOGRAPHS--ENGLAND--HAND-COLORED--1860.
         POLITICAL CARTOONS--FRENCH--FRANCE--PARIS--1700-1750.

Geographic subdivisions are expressed "indirectly," i.e., with the larger jurisdiction preceding the smaller, as outlined in the Library of Congress Cataloging Service Bulletin 120 (1977), pp. 9-11. The geographic place refers to where the material was made, not the place depicted.

Example:  ENGRAVINGS--ENGLAND--LONDON--1840-1850.

The term REPRODUCTIONS may be used as a free-floating subdivision whenever the material being cataloged is a copy photograph, facsimile reprint, or other type of reproduction, and it is important to provide access by the medium of the original work.

Example: A copy photograph, made in 1920, of an oil portrait painting from 1750, could be indexed with three headings.

          PORTRAIT PAINTINGS--1750--REPRODUCTIONS.
          OIL PAINTINGS--1750--REPRODUCTIONS.
          PHOTOGRAPHIC PRINTS--1920. 

Each institution must determine its own scheme for chronological subdivision. The date should be the cataloged material's date of creation, not the date of the subject depicted. One useful practice is to use inclusive decade spans, as shown in the examples here. Another option is to use the single year or span of years from the descriptive portion of the record, as outlined in Graphic Materials.

These subdivision patterns can also be used in manual files. In addition, some format-oriented genre headings may make useful subdivisions for topical terms to compensate for the lack of postcoordinate searching capability. For example, TOBACCO--ADVERTISEMENTS; SLAVERY--BROADSIDES; PATENT MEDICINES--LABELS; WOMEN--PORTRAITS.