An aggregation of documents that originates from the same source, i.e. following the principle of provenance. Documents within a fonds are usually the result of the daily workings of an agency, individual, or organisation. Fonds are one of the possible top levels within a multi-level, hierarchical description, followed by lower levels such as sub-fonds, series, subseries, file, and item, where archival description leads from the general to the specific.