Casting the net wider: Network approaches to artefact variation in post-Roman Europe

This paper explores the stylistic variability of fifth- and sixth-century brooches in Europe using network visualisations, suggesting an alternative means of study, which for more than a century has been dominated by typology. It is suggested that network methods and related theories offer alternati...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Martin, TF
Format: Journal article
Language:English
Published: Springer 2020
_version_ 1797077453937573888
author Martin, TF
author_facet Martin, TF
author_sort Martin, TF
collection OXFORD
description This paper explores the stylistic variability of fifth- and sixth-century brooches in Europe using network visualisations, suggesting an alternative means of study, which for more than a century has been dominated by typology. It is suggested that network methods and related theories offer alternative conceptual models that encourage original ways of exploring material that has otherwise become canonical. Foremost is the proposal that objects of personal adornment like brooches were a means of competitive display through which individuals mediated social relationships within and beyond their immediate communities, and in so doing formed surprisingly far-flung networks. The potential sizes of these networks varied according to their location in Europe, with particularly large distances of up to 1000 km achieved in Scandinavia and continental Europe. In addition, an overall tendency toward the serial reproduction of particular forms in the mid-sixth century has broader consequences for how we understand the changing nature of social networks in post-Roman Europe.
first_indexed 2024-03-07T00:18:14Z
format Journal article
id oxford-uuid:7b98831a-2e16-4a88-a3b6-da0e92d56a5e
institution University of Oxford
language English
last_indexed 2024-03-07T00:18:14Z
publishDate 2020
publisher Springer
record_format dspace
spelling oxford-uuid:7b98831a-2e16-4a88-a3b6-da0e92d56a5e2022-03-26T20:51:43ZCasting the net wider: Network approaches to artefact variation in post-Roman EuropeJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:7b98831a-2e16-4a88-a3b6-da0e92d56a5eEnglishSymplectic ElementsSpringer2020Martin, TFThis paper explores the stylistic variability of fifth- and sixth-century brooches in Europe using network visualisations, suggesting an alternative means of study, which for more than a century has been dominated by typology. It is suggested that network methods and related theories offer alternative conceptual models that encourage original ways of exploring material that has otherwise become canonical. Foremost is the proposal that objects of personal adornment like brooches were a means of competitive display through which individuals mediated social relationships within and beyond their immediate communities, and in so doing formed surprisingly far-flung networks. The potential sizes of these networks varied according to their location in Europe, with particularly large distances of up to 1000 km achieved in Scandinavia and continental Europe. In addition, an overall tendency toward the serial reproduction of particular forms in the mid-sixth century has broader consequences for how we understand the changing nature of social networks in post-Roman Europe.
spellingShingle Martin, TF
Casting the net wider: Network approaches to artefact variation in post-Roman Europe
title Casting the net wider: Network approaches to artefact variation in post-Roman Europe
title_full Casting the net wider: Network approaches to artefact variation in post-Roman Europe
title_fullStr Casting the net wider: Network approaches to artefact variation in post-Roman Europe
title_full_unstemmed Casting the net wider: Network approaches to artefact variation in post-Roman Europe
title_short Casting the net wider: Network approaches to artefact variation in post-Roman Europe
title_sort casting the net wider network approaches to artefact variation in post roman europe
work_keys_str_mv AT martintf castingthenetwidernetworkapproachestoartefactvariationinpostromaneurope