materialdescriptive

Materialdescriptive is a term used in several disciplines to denote discourse, analyses, or metadata that foreground the material properties of objects, substances, or media. The concept covers both descriptive language about materials in natural or manufactured forms and the documentation of materials in information systems. In museum informatics and digital archives, materialdescriptive metadata describes tangible attributes such as material type, fabrication technique, physical dimensions, weight, texture, finish, and provenance. Such metadata supports search, conservation planning, and authenticity assessment.

In linguistics and design studies, materialdescriptive descriptions encompass adjectives and phrases that encode tactile, chemical, or structural qualities, going beyond color or style to emphasize materiality and process. This broader usage treats materiality as an informative feature of artifacts, influencing interpretation and handling.

Typical materialdescriptive fields may include material, technique, dimensions, mass, density, surface treatment, durability, and deterioration indicators. Examples include a catalog entry for a porcelain vase with material: porcelain; glaze: blue underglaze; dimensions: 22 cm high; mass: 0.68 kg; finish: glossy.

The term is a neologism with varied usage and no single governing standard. In practice, materialdescriptive data often aligns with descriptive metadata practices and with material culture studies that analyze how materiality contributes to meaning and function. See also descriptive metadata, materials science, material culture, and texture descriptors.