# dpla.archives.by_subject

Browse digitized items from US archives by subject or topic keyword using DPLA subject vocabulary. Subjects include broad categories (Women, Architecture, Photography) and historical topics (Civil War, Native Americans, Abolitionists). Optionally filter by media type. Returns paginated list of matching items with title, creator, date, type, thumbnail, and direct URL.

Agent View of the PolicyLayer registry record for `dpla.archives.by_subject`. HTML page: https://policylayer.com/tools/io-github-whiteknightonhorse-apibase/dpla.archives.by-subject

## Facts

- Tool: `dpla.archives.by_subject`
- Server: Apibase (`apibase-mcp-client`) — https://policylayer.com/tools/io-github-whiteknightonhorse-apibase.md
- Install: `npx -y apibase-mcp-client`
- Homepage: https://github.com/whiteknightonhorse/APIbase
- Risk category: Read (Low risk)
- Registry record: grade F, identity unverified
- Server auth posture: open
- Server rate-limited: no
- Parameters: 4 (1 required)
- Recommended policy verdict: Allowed

## Parameters

| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `page` | integer | no | Page number for pagination, starting at 1 (default: 1) |
| `type` | string | no | Optionally narrow results to a specific media type: image, text, sound, moving image, or physical object |
| `subject` | string | yes | Subject or topic to browse (e.g. "Photography", "Women", "Architecture", "Native Americans"). Case-insensitive exact match against DPLA subject vocabulary. |
| `page_size` | integer | no | Number of items per page, 1–50 (default: 10) |

Parameters from the server's own tool schema.

## Example call (MCP tools/call, JSON-RPC 2.0)

```json
{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 1,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "dpla.archives.by_subject",
    "arguments": {
      "subject": "<subject>"
    }
  }
}
```

## Why dpla.archives.by_subject is rated Low

Tool retrieves and queries archived items without modification or execution capabilities.

From the tool's own definition: "Browse digitized items, paginated list, returns title, creator, date, type, thumbnail, URL"

## Use case

AI agents call dpla.archives.by_subject to retrieve information from Apibase without modifying anything. It is typically the context-gathering step in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows, before the agent takes action elsewhere.

## Recommended policy (PolicyLayer)

Verdict: **Allowed**. Enforced by the PolicyLayer MCP gateway (https://policylayer.com/mcp-gateway) before a call reaches Apibase:

```json
{
  "version": "1",
  "default": "deny",
  "tools": {
    "dpla.archives.by_subject": {}
  }
}
```

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## For agents

This record is a snapshot. Live verdicts and the full registry:

- Check every server in your MCP config at once: `npx -y policylayer stack`
- Vet a server before you add it: install the mcp-precheck skill — `npx skills add https://policylayer.com` (skill text: https://policylayer.com/skill.md)
- Query the registry over MCP: endpoint `https://api.policylayer.com/mcp` — tools `check_mcp_server`, `check_mcp_stack`, `check_tool`, `search_registry`, `get_change_events`

---

Source: the PolicyLayer MCP registry — one continuously verified record per MCP server. Full record: https://policylayer.com/registry?q=io-github-whiteknightonhorse-apibase · API: https://policylayer.com/registry/api · Policy library: https://policylayer.com/policies/io-github-whiteknightonhorse-apibase