---

name: view-document-guide description: Guide for the document viewer tools. Use when the user asks to "view document", "display pages", "show document", "document viewer", "view manifest", or wants to visually inspect document pages. Covers reference-code, manifest, and raw-URL entry points.

Document Viewer Tools

Three tools open the interactive document viewer. Choose based on what you have:

Tool	When to use
view_document	You have a Riksarkivet reference code (e.g. from search results)
view_manifest	You have a IIIF manifest URL (e.g. from SDHK/MPO search or any IIIF source)
view_document_urls	You already have raw image URLs and text layer XML URLs

All tools render the same interactive viewer with zoomable images, text-layer overlays (when ALTO XML is available), search, info panel, and fullscreen.

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view_document — From Reference Code

Resolves a Riksarkivet reference code into IIIF image URLs and ALTO XML text layers automatically via BrowseOperations.

Required Arguments

Argument	Type	Description
reference_code	string	Archive reference code (e.g. "SE/RA/420422/01")
pages	string	Page spec: "5", "1-10", or "5,7,9"

Optional Arguments

Argument	Type	Default	Description
highlight_term	string	null	Pre-populate search bar and highlight matches
max_pages	int	20	Maximum pages to retrieve (max: 20)

Examples

{"reference_code": "SE/RA/420422/01", "pages": "7"}

{"reference_code": "SE/RA/420422/01", "pages": "1-10", "highlight_term": "Stockholm"}

{"reference_code": "SE/RA/310187/1", "pages": "5,7,9"}

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view_manifest — From IIIF Manifest URL

Fetches a IIIF manifest, extracts page images and ALTO text layers (from seeAlso), and opens the viewer. Works with any IIIF Presentation API v3 manifest — Riksarkivet, Wellcome Collection, or other providers.

Required Arguments

Argument	Type	Description
manifest_url	string	Full IIIF manifest URL

Optional Arguments

Argument	Type	Default	Description
highlight_term	string	null	Pre-populate search bar and highlight matches
max_pages	int	20	Maximum pages to load (max: 20)

Examples

Riksarkivet police records (with ALTO transcription):

{"manifest_url": "https://lbiiif.riksarkivet.se/arkis!30002056/manifest"}

SDHK medieval charter (image only, no transcription):

{"manifest_url": "https://lbiiif.riksarkivet.se/sdhk!85/manifest"}

SDHK with Transkribus transcription (from Hugging Face):

{"manifest_url": "https://huggingface.co/buckets/Riksarkivet/sdhk_hack/resolve/transkribus/manifests/sdhk_R0001691.json"}

Wellcome Collection (external provider, with ALTO):

{"manifest_url": "https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/presentation/b18035723", "max_pages": 10}

Note: Documents with ALTO XML in the manifest's seeAlso will have text overlays and transcription. Documents without show images only.

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view_document_urls — From Raw URLs

Use when you already have image and text layer URLs (e.g. from external sources or manual construction). Prefer view_manifest when you have a manifest URL.

Required Arguments

Argument	Type	Description
image_urls	list[string]	One image URL per page (JPEG or PNG)
text_layer_urls	list[string]	One XML URL per page (ALTO/PAGE), paired 1:1 with image_urls. Use "" for pages without transcription

Both lists must have the same length.

Optional Arguments

Argument	Type	Default	Description
document_info	string	null	Markdown-formatted document metadata for the info panel
highlight_term	string	null	Pre-populate search bar and highlight matches

Examples

{
  "image_urls": ["https://lbiiif.riksarkivet.se/arkis!R0001203_00007/full/max/0/default.jpg"],
  "text_layer_urls": ["https://sok.riksarkivet.se/dokument/alto/R000/R0001203/R0001203_00007.xml"]
}

With document info:

{
  "image_urls": ["https://example.com/page1.jpg", "https://example.com/page2.jpg"],
  "text_layer_urls": ["https://example.com/page1.xml", ""],
  "document_info": "## My Document\n\n**Date:** 1902\n\n**Source:** Example archive"
}

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viewer_go_to_page — Jump to a Page in Open Viewer

Use this when the user asks to "go to page 3" or "show page 5". Does NOT replace the loaded pages — just scrolls to that page within the already-loaded document.

Argument	Type	Description
page	integer	Page number (1-based)

{"page": 3}

---

viewer_set_highlight — Change Highlight in Open Viewer

IMPORTANT: Use this instead of calling view_document/view_document_urls again when the viewer is already open and the user just wants to highlight a different term. Calling the original tools again creates a duplicate viewer.

Argument	Type	Description
highlight_term	string	Search term to highlight. Use "" to clear.

{"highlight_term": "göteborg"}

---

viewer_navigate — Navigate to Different Pages in Open Viewer

IMPORTANT: Use this instead of calling view_document again when the viewer is already open and the user wants to see different pages. Calling the original tool again creates a duplicate viewer.

Argument	Type	Description
reference_code	string	Archive reference code
pages	string	Page spec: "5", "1-10", or "5,7,9"
highlight_term	string (optional)	Search term to highlight

{"reference_code": "SE/RA/420422/01", "pages": "20-30", "highlight_term": "Stockholm"}

---

Typical Workflow

1. Search with search_transcribed, search_metadata, or diplomatics:search_sdhk to find documents.
2. Browse with browse_document to read the transcription text.
3. View with view_document (reference code), view_manifest (IIIF URL), or view_document_urls (raw URLs).
4. Update with viewer_set_highlight or viewer_navigate to change what's displayed without creating a new viewer.

When to Use Which Tool

Scenario	Tool
Have a reference code from search	view_document
Have a IIIF manifest URL (SDHK, MPO, Wellcome, etc.)	view_manifest
Have raw image/ALTO URLs	view_document_urls
User asks to "go to page 3"	viewer_go_to_page
User asks to highlight/search a different term	viewer_set_highlight
User says "show the viewer again" / "open the document"	viewer_reopen
User asks to load a different set of pages	viewer_navigate or viewer_navigate_urls
User asks to view a completely different document	view_document, view_manifest, or view_document_urls

Key rule: Never call the entry-point tools twice in the same conversation if the viewer is already open. Use the update tools instead.

Common Mistakes

Mistake	Fix
Calling view_document again to change the highlight	Use viewer_set_highlight — it updates the existing viewer without creating a duplicate.
Calling view_document again to show different pages	Use viewer_navigate — it updates the existing viewer.
Using view_document with a manifest URL	Use view_manifest for IIIF manifest URLs. view_document takes reference_code + pages.
Using view_document with a manifest ID like 30002056	Use a full reference code like SE/RA/.... Get it from search results.
Mismatched list lengths in view_document_urls	Every image_urls entry needs a corresponding text_layer_urls entry.
Forgetting "" for missing text layers	Use an empty string — do not omit the entry or use null.
Using highlight_term on pages without text layers	Highlights require ALTO/PAGE XML. Pages with "" text layers won't have matches.