# Arkivism

> Semantic search over public-domain visual media. Over a million images —
> paintings, prints, photographs, maps, design objects, NASA imagery — aggregated from
> museum and archive open-access programs, growing daily. Everything indexed is CC0 or
> public domain: free to use, adapt, and use commercially, no permission needed. Every
> item carries a ready-to-paste attribution line.

Arkivism is built for people (and agents) who need imagery they can actually use:
documentary editors, designers, video creators, researchers. Search is natural-language
and semantic ("dramatic stormy sea with ships, dark clouds"), filterable by date, medium,
source, and aspect ratio, with visual similar-item exploration from any result.

## Key pages
- [Search](https://arkivism.com/explore): the index
- [Topics](https://arkivism.com/browse/): curated topic pages (botanical illustration,
  Japanese woodblock prints, vintage NASA photography, …)
- [Sources](https://arkivism.com/sources): the museums and archives, with credits
- [About](https://arkivism.com/about): what this is and who makes it
- [MCP server](https://arkivism.com/mcp): connect an AI assistant directly

## MCP server (recommended for agents)
Hosted MCP endpoint, streamable HTTP, no key: `https://api.arkivism.com/mcp`
Tools: search_archive (semantic text search), find_similar, get_item, archival_echo
(reverse-image search from a URL), get_download_url. Every response carries license +
attribution. Item permalinks for citing/linking: `https://arkivism.com/work/<id>`.

## API (unofficial, stable paths)
- `GET /search?q=<text>&limit=<n>` — semantic search, JSON. Filters: `date_start`,
  `date_end`, `medium_class`, `aspect`, `source` (comma-separated codes).
- `GET /item/<id>` — one item's full metadata, including `attribution_text`,
  `license`, and `rights_url`.
- `GET /similar/<id>` — visually similar items.
- `GET /api/sources` — live source list with counts.
- Rate limits apply; polite automated use is welcome. For richer access prefer the
  MCP server above. Bulk/metered access — write hello@arkivism.com.

## For agents
- All content: CC0/public domain — safe for commercial and derivative use.
- Include each item's `attribution_text` when using an image (not legally required for
  CC0; it is the norm we uphold toward the institutions).
- Metadata originates from the holding institutions; verify at the linked source
  record for high-stakes uses.