The framework discussed in this section was built specifically for use in archaeological contexts where textual sources are either absent, scarce, or do not address the production systems in the associated society. In this model, numerous parameters of specialized production, including intensity, concentration, constitution, and context, are distinguished from one another so that the full variability in production systems can be explored. Among these parameters, studies of context often depend on assumptions about the connection between the type of object being produced and the organization of production. Specifically, the production of prestige goods is thought to imply some form of attached production. Yet such an association incorrectly assumes that the ontological nature of a product is easily identified, essential, and unchanging and oversimplifies the connection between product type and context. When models such as this one are used to examine the organization of manufacture of products whose nature is difficult to determine a priori (such as salt), some of the preconceptions associated with the model need to be reassessed.