curranthro-tables-figures

Tables, Figures & Exhibits (curranthro-tables-figures)

At CA, exhibits do more than display numbers — a photograph, a map, a site plan, a kinship chart, or an artifact plate can carry the argument across all subfields. They also carry ethical and rights obligations that other fields' charts do not, and they are governed by CA's per-type figure caps and file-format rules (figures submitted as separate TIFF or EPS files, not embedded PDFs). For a Major Article under the CA✩ Treatment, an unclear or ethically problematic exhibit becomes a target for published Comment — design exhibits that strengthen the argument and withstand scrutiny.

When to trigger

• Designing the key photograph, map, site plan, artifact image, kinship/network diagram, or table
• Preparing a transcript or evidence table linking claims to sources
• Checking your figure/table count against the article-type cap
• A reviewer found an exhibit unclear, unlabeled, or ethically/rights-problematic

Principles

1. Self-contained. A reader understands each exhibit from its caption, labels, and note alone — state place, date, what is shown, sample/N (for quantitative exhibits), and the source.
2. The exhibit should argue. A photograph or map that merely decorates wastes space; choose exhibits that advance the interpretation (a contrast, a spatial pattern, a relational structure).
3. Consent & dignity. People depicted have consented to that use; faces/identifiers are handled per the consent given (blur or anonymize where required). Do not publish images that expose or endanger interlocutors (see curranthro-transparency-and-data).
4. Permissions & rights. Secure permissions for archival images, museum objects, and others' media; credit lines and licenses are correct. Heritage/community rights over images of cultural property and ancestral remains are respected — some images should not be reproduced at all.
5. Accessible. Provide alt text / image descriptions; colorblind-safe and grayscale-legible where color carries meaning; legible transcripts with transcription conventions stated.
6. Reproducible (quant exhibits). Numbers in tables/plots match the underlying analysis exactly.

CA figure caps & formats (checked 2026-06; verify live Instructions for Authors)

• Major Article: up to 12 figures and tables.
• Report: up to 4 figures and tables.
• File format: submit text and tables in a single word-processing file (.doc/.rtf, not PDF); submit figures (graphs and images) as separate TIFF (.tif) or EPS (.eps) files.

Discipline-specific exhibits

• Archaeology: site maps, stratigraphic sections, artifact plates, distribution maps, chronologies.
• Biological: measurement plots with uncertainty, morphological figures, sampling maps.
• Linguistic: interlinear glossed transcripts (with conventions), discourse excerpts.
• Sociocultural: field photographs (with consent), kinship/network diagrams, evidence tables.

Anti-patterns

• A photograph or map that decorates rather than argues
• Images of identifiable people without consent for that use; exposing vulnerable interlocutors
• Reproducing sacred/heritage objects or ancestral remains against community wishes
• Missing permissions/credit for archival or museum images
• Embedding figures in the text PDF instead of supplying separate TIFF/EPS files; exceeding the type's cap
• Quantitative exhibit values that don't match the analysis

Output format

【Main exhibit】what it shows + why it argues (not decorates)
【Self-contained?】caption + labels + source + date/place present? [Y/N]
【Consent & rights】people consented / permissions secured / heritage respected? [Y/N]
【Accessible?】alt text/description + grayscale-legible + transcript conventions? [Y/N]
【Count & format】within cap (12 Major / 4 Report)? separate TIFF/EPS? [Y/N]
【Next】curranthro-writing-style

Exhibit decision table (by subfield)

If your exhibit is…	The first question an editor/commentator asks	The fix that clears it
A field photograph of people	Did they consent to this image being published?	Consent on file; blur/withhold per consent; caption with place/date
A map or site plan	Does it reveal a protected/sacred location?	Generalize coordinates; consult the community before publishing
An artifact plate / museum image	Are permissions and credits secured; is it heritage-sensitive?	Clear rights; respect community authority; some objects are not reproduced
An interlinear transcript	Are transcription conventions stated and glosses legible?	State conventions; align glosses; translate fairly
A quantitative plot (bio/archaeo)	Does it show uncertainty, and do values match the analysis?	Plot intervals/effect sizes; reconcile numbers to the source

Calibration anchors (hedged)

• At CA, an exhibit is an ethical act, not just a display: consent, heritage authority, and the dignity of the people shown can override the cleanest visualization.
• Figure/table caps and file-format requirements are set per article type — confirm the current Instructions for Authors and the Editorial Manager upload prompts before final submission.

Supplementary resources

• ../../resources/external_tools.md — mapping/GIS, image, transcription, and plotting tools
• ../../resources/official-source-map.md — figure caps, file formats, permissions requirements