vam.collections.search
Search 1M+ objects in the Victoria and Albert Museum collection by keyword, object type, date range, and display status. Returns object type, title, maker, date, place of origin, thumbnail URL, and IIIF image base for each result. Filter by on_display=true to find objects currently on display in ...
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What vam.collections.search does on Apibase
AI agents call vam.collections.search 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.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
page | integer | — | Page number for paginating through results (default 1). |
query | string | — | Keyword search across titles, descriptions, maker names, and materials (e.g. "teapot", "William Morris", "silk embroidery"). Leave empty to browse all objects. |
year_to | integer | — | Latest production year filter (e.g. 1850). |
page_size | integer | — | Number of results per page (1-30, default 10). |
year_from | integer | — | Earliest production year filter (e.g. 1750). |
on_display | boolean | — | When true, return only objects currently on display in V&A galleries. When false or omitted, include objects in storage too. |
object_type | string | — | Filter by object type (e.g. "Painting", "Vase", "Tile", "Photograph", "Drawing", "Print", "Textile"). Case-sensitive; use exact V&A category names. |
Parameters from the server's own tool schema.
Why vam.collections.search is rated Low
Retrieves museum collection metadata via search query with no side effects or data modification capabilities.
From the tool's definition Search 1M+ objects in Victoria and Albert Museum collection by keyword. Returns object type, title, maker, date, place of origin, thumbnail URL.
Attacks that exploit this kind of access
The rule that runs vam.collections.search safely
PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway: it sits between your AI agents and Apibase, and checks every tool call against a rule you set before the call runs. Nothing changes on the server itself. For vam.collections.search, this is the rule to start with:
vam.collections.search is read-only, so it stays allowed. Everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.
The button opens the PolicyLayer dashboard: create your workspace, connect Apibase, apply this rule, and every vam.collections.search call is checked against it from then on.
Questions about vam.collections.search
Search 1M+ objects in the Victoria and Albert Museum collection by keyword, object type, date range, and display status. Returns object type, title, maker, date, place of origin, thumbnail URL, and IIIF image base for each result. Filter by on_display=true to find objects currently on display in London. Source: V&A public API (no auth required). It is categorised as a Read tool in the Apibase MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.
vam.collections.search accepts 7 parameters: page, query, year_to, page_size, year_from, on_display, object_type. The full parameter table on this page comes from the server's own tool schema.
Register the Apibase MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for vam.collections.search: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches Apibase. Nothing to install.
vam.collections.search is a Read tool with low risk. Read-only tools are generally safe to allow by default.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the vam.collections.search rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.
Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for vam.collections.search. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.
vam.collections.search is provided by the Apibase MCP server (apibase-mcp-client). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
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