Trade competition and artefact distribution

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Abstract
It seems possible that one effect of competitive commerce is that the distributions of traded artefacts may tend to avoid one another and to seek areas of potential monopoly. Possible examples of this pattern in archaeological contexts are briefly discussed and the dangers of attributing economic effects of this kind to cultural divisions are emphasized. In this light the importance of characterizing artefacts and the need to use realistic models in considering a cultural assemblage are both emphasized.