Capture date

A capture date describes a preservation action. It differs from the date an author created a work, the date a publisher released it, and the date you later accessed the saved copy. A page captured in 2020 can contain a document dated 1998 and text updated in 2019. Label these dates separately in notes and exports. When a capture is the earliest surviving example you located, say exactly that; do not turn it into a first-publication claim. Check which resource the timestamp describes, especially when an archived page draws on resources from different captures. If precision matters, retain the timezone or the archive's timestamp convention. The practical benefit is a timeline that shows what was observed when, without silently claiming to know when the underlying cultural event began.

Editorial review: 2026-09-23. New evidence may change this account.

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