Glass bead studies, using increasingly sophisticated methods, have become important in examining archaeological questions related to technology, chronology, and exchange in the ancient world. In this introductory chapter, the goal is to provide a context for the case studies presented in this volume, within the broader field of glass bead studies. For that purpose, we briefly review th…
The performance of more efficient technologies is often dependent on how they are used by householders, if at all. Moreover, short-term efficiency gains may be wiped out by increasing overall consumption in order to reach newly perceived levels of comfort, convenience and stand-ards. This increase in consumption manifests, for example, through social pressure to…