A system of material, social or informational connections linking communities, regions, institutions or individuals through repeated flows of goods, people, services or information; characterized by nodes, ties, directionality, frequency, scale and the mechanisms that organize transfer (markets, gift exchange, down‑the‑line exchange, pilgrimage, migration).

Principle

The structure and modalities of the network (centralized vs. decentralized, dense vs. sparse, reciprocal vs. market) shape what moves, at what rate, and with what social consequences; network topology constrains access, resilience, and inequality of distribution.

Demonstration

Illustrative Scenario — Situation: Chemical sourcing shows a pot's clay derives from three non-local sources across several sites. Recognition: Distribution patterns are uneven and correlate with specific settlements. Action: Analysts map ties among sites, identify recurring directional flows and tie strengths, and combine with burial and craft evidence to infer exchange mechanisms (e.g., specialist producers sending goods to elite centres vs. down‑the‑line dispersal). Consequence: The network interpretation explains both the geographic spread of the material and associated social relationships rather than attributing presence to single dramatic voyages.

Misapplication

Assuming the mere presence of non‑local items indicates formal long‑distance trade or market institutions; the semantic error is conflating presence with a specific mechanism of transfer without analysing network structure and alternative pathways.

Consequence

Accurate network analysis clarifies circulation mechanisms, social relations, and dependencies and can reveal nodes of political or economic significance; misidentification can exaggerate centralization, obscure local agency, or misread social obligations embedded in exchange.

Reversal

In highly mobile societies or in contexts dominated by episodic gift exchanges, observed material networks may reflect personal mobility patterns rather than stable institutionalized exchange; network models assuming stationarity or stable ties may therefore misrepresent dynamics.

Boundary

Clearly within: analyses that identify repeated ties, directions, and mechanisms linking multiple nodes over space/time. Boundary case: isolated finds with suggested but untested links. Clearly outside: isolated transfer events with no evidence of persistent ties.

Semantic Tension

Economic models (supply, demand, market) ↔ Social-relational models (status, obligation, alliance): explanations based on utility compete with explanations based on social meaning and obligation.

Synthesis

Exchange networks are relational infrastructures: material distributions gain explanatory force only when interpreted through mapped ties, modes of transmission, and social contexts rather than through counts of non-local objects alone.