Networks of Social Stability in the Mediterranean Bronze Age

Author(s): Wendy Cegielski

Year: 2016

Summary

Certain social systems do not become more complex. They remain stable for considerable periods of time despite constant environmental and cultural change, a fact that remains a puzzle in archaeology. Research by Iberian archaeologists indicates that the Valencian Bronze Age in Mediterranean Spain may be such a case where material homogeneity represents a social system lasting with little change for nearly 700 years (BC 2200-1500). This trend stands in stark contrast to the complex social changes noted for its southern, contemporaneous neighboring region—the Argaric. Moreover, several archaeologists have proposed that the types and scales of social networks that a society exhibits have a profound influence on changes in social complexity. Thus, this study presents the preliminary results of the use of Network Science to explore both spatial and social explanatory mechanisms for the apparent social stability of the Valencian Bronze Age.

Cite this Record

Networks of Social Stability in the Mediterranean Bronze Age. Wendy Cegielski. Presented at The 81st Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology, Orlando, Florida. 2016 ( tDAR id: 404102)

Keywords

Geographic Keywords
Europe

Spatial Coverage

min long: -11.074; min lat: 37.44 ; max long: 50.098; max lat: 70.845 ;