archival medium
n. (archival media, pl.)
The material that serves as the carrier of the content of a record and that, because of the manner in which it was made, has a very long life expectancy when properly stored and handled.
Notes
'Archival medium' is not a technical concept that is appropriate for specifying media for creating permanent records, although it is often used informally to distinguish media appropriate for archival records from other media.
Citations
AIIM 1998, p. 5 [archival medium] Recording material that can be expected to retain information forever, so that such information can be retrieved without significant loss when properly stored. However, there is no such material and it is not a term to be used in American National Standard material or system specifications.
