Networks as Resources for Ancient Communities

Abstract

Covering various periods and geo-cultural areas from Iran to the western Mediterranean, with a strong focus on classical antiquity, the papers collected here approach the topic of network as resources in three different but interrelated thematic domains: the interaction between societies and the natural environment (socio-natural networks), the transmission of knowledge and habitus (networks of knowledge and power) and religious interactions (sacred landscape). The social values that communities attribute to the networks they are embedded in are opened up to new interpretative layers, dynamics and scales. Looking at networks as resources changes our perspective on both terms of the equation. On the one hand, ancient networks are reframed in their relational and social contexts and linked to their actors’ intentions and perceptions. On the other hand, the properties of specific networks, such as fluidity, redundancy and the strength and fragility of relationships, shed new light on resources and resource-related socio-cultural dynamics.