In this essay I seek to examine how the Principle of Provenance can be discerned in the new activity-based wayof establishing an archival description. In which terms do authors of reports and works about archival descriptionspeak about provenance. Do they at all?In order to do so I have studied the history of the Principle of Provenance and what is to be its future ? theregulation from the Swedish National Archives, RA-FS 2008:4. I have also read the referrel that was sent out toSwedish authorities, universities and other archival institutions.