Add original artwork upload date metadata

From a cursory search this wasn't discussed, so I'm making a new thread.

Sometimes you want to find artworks originally uploaded around a certain time, but you can't do that because Danbooru only shows the Danbooru upload time. (So for example, if an artwork was uploaded on Pixiv in 2018, but only uploaded to Danbooru in 2022, it will only appear in the 2022 range, not the 2018 one)

It would help to sort images made around the time certain events took place (pool #5960)

Because of that, I would like to ask if it was possible to gather the original upload date and add it as data to the post, in a similar manner to commentary.

I would also support this, if feasible. It would help with refuting AI accusations/flags of art created before the AI era, if they happen. Ex: post #10359505. It’s not too hard to look at the upload date at the source, but if the source or account is deleted it could be useful.

for now topic #32607...

trapster77 said:

for now topic #32607...

That only covers pixiv uploads.

I would love a feature like this, as it counters the inherent randomness of tracking only when it is uploaded to Danbooru, considering there are many users who mainly specialize in uploading older works. Having a system for displaying the OG date would be wonderful, and be great for cross-referencing posts for historic reasons (like the origin of a very popular meme for example).

Knowledge_Seeker said:

I would love a feature like this, as it counters the inherent randomness of tracking only when it is uploaded to Danbooru, considering there are many users who mainly specialize in uploading older works. Having a system for displaying the OG date would be wonderful, and be great for cross-referencing posts for historic reasons (like the origin of a very popular meme for example).

Also if it's added there should be an option to view search results in creation order rather then upload as well.

There's a weakness to this, some platforms let you edit your post and swap out images after you initially upload. That should be accounted for as well.

A feature like this would be nice to have, though I'm curious how it would be handled in cases where the original posts have been deleted or lost to time.

As much as i would like this to be a viable feature, it would have a lot of pitfalls.

Login_to_view said:

It would help to sort images made around the time certain events took place

The problem is that there's no guarantee about the timestamp at the source being anywhere near the time the art was actually made. Artists repost their own work all the time, and it's not unusual for artists to sit on a finished image for a long time before ever uploading it to the internet. Not to mention other complications such as second-party_sources/third-party_sources, or sources with multiple timestamps (e.g. created time, edited time) like freshblink already mentioned.

I wouldn't that say the source timestamp is entirely useless information. But you would need to be careful about treating it as anything more significant than 'the time the art was posted at that particular source'.

bipface said:

I wouldn't that say the source timestamp is entirely useless information. But you would need to be careful about treating it as anything more significant than 'the time the art was posted at that particular source'.

Oh yes, of course. It would still, however, be useful to sort artworks posted around a certain window of time, regardless of when the art was made.

TenaciousTurtleDucks said:

A feature like this would be nice to have, though I'm curious how it would be handled in cases where the original posts have been deleted or lost to time.

Leave it as missing, maybe allow an option to include posts with unknown original upload date, but use Danbooru upload date during search/sorting

Freshblink said:

There's a weakness to this, some platforms let you edit your post and swap out images after you initially upload. That should be accounted for as well.

I agree, but I'm not sure if it can be done if the edit date isn't logged. At the moment the best thing we have for that is the automated MD5 mismatch check, which is better than nothing.

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Moebits said in forum #405345:

It's worth noting that the "last updated" date and time is already in the direct url for pixiv. A url like this https://i.pximg.net/img-original/img/2025/12/21/01/07/53/138841665_p0.jpg says that it was last updated on 12/21/2025 01:07:53 JST (UTC+9).

Artists with pixiv premium can update the image to correct errors, so many times it won't match the "original" upload date.

Could just always add separate metadata for updated time. Might be useful for edits which are different enough to not be considered duplicates with the original image. (assuming the original was even uploaded here before the revision)