This README file was generated on 2020-11 by MATTHEW COULTER (revised 2022-06)

This README file follows the recommended guidelines set out in https://data.research.cornell.edu/content/readme#recommendedcontent

GENERAL INFORMATION

1. Title of Dataset: 'Research Data Supporting "Patterns of Communication during the 1241 Mongol Invasion of Europe: Insights from the Ottobeuren Letter Collection"', Apollo (University of Cambridge Repository), https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.61487

2. Author Information
	
	Name: Matthew Coulter
	Institution: Faculty of History, University of Cambridge
	Address: St John's College, St John's Street, Cambridge, CB2 1TP, United Kingdom
	Email: mattcoulter@hotmail.com

3. Date of data collection (approx.): 2019–03 to 2020–11 (revised 2021–03)

4. Geographic location of data collection: Innsbruck, Austria; Cambridge, United Kingdom

5. Keywords: 1241, Communication, Letters, Hungary, Mongols, Network, Ottobeuren, Swabia

6. Funding sources: This project was supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) under grant number 2280801, and by Masters funding from the Isaac Newton Trust and St John’s College, University of Cambridge

DATA AND FILE OVERVIEW

1. File list:
1241_Patterns_of_Communication_Figures.gephi: master file of two figures
Figure1_nodes.csv: extracted CSV file of figure 1 nodes
Figure1_edges.csv: extracted CSV file of figure 1 edges
Figure2_nodes.csv: extracted CSV file of figure 2 nodes
Figure2_edges.csv: extracted CSV file of figure 2 edges

2. Relationship between files:
Figure1_nodes.csv and Figure1_edges.csv are extracted versions of the data tables found in figure 1 of the master file (1241_Patterns_of_Communication_Figures.gephi). Figure2_nodes.csv and Figure2_edges.csv are extracted versions of the data tables found in figure 2 of the master file. These CSV files can be imported into Gephi in order to recreate the figures.

SHARING AND ACCESS INFORMATION

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

METHODOLOGICAL INFORMATION

1. Description of methods used for collection/generation of data:
Figure 1 connections were formulated on the basis of the Ottobeuren collection and transcriptions of the individual letters found within it (1). Figure 2 connections were formulated on the basis of this and a range of primary source editions containing letters from mid-1241 on the Mongols (2).

(1) Innsbruck, Universitäts- und Landesbibliothek, Cod. 187, ff. 1v–8v; see also appendix 1 in article
(2) See appendix 2 in article

2. Methods for processing the data: 
Information on communication during mid-1241 was converted (by hand) into node and edge spreadsheets and imported into Gephi (3). Their degree and/or weighted degree were both calculated, and the networks were ordered using inbuilt algorithms. Figure 1 is rendered using the Fruchterman Reingold algorithm (4). Figure 2 is rendered using the ForceAtlas 2 algorithm (5). Labels found in the published figures were added in CorelDRAW®, and the figures were subsequently exported as EPS files.

(3) Bastian, Mathieu, Sebastien Heymann, and Mathieu Jacomy. ‘Gephi: An Open Source Software for Exploring and Manipulating Networks’, 1–2. San Jose, CA, 2009. https://gephi.org/publications/gephi-bastian-feb09.pdf
(4) Fruchterman, Thomas M. J., and Edward M. Reingold. ‘Graph Drawing by Force-Directed Placement’. Software: Practice and Experience 21, no. 11 (1991): 1129–64
(5) Jacomy, Mathieu, Tommaso Venturini, Sebastien Heymann, and Mathieu Bastian. ‘ForceAtlas2, a Continuous Graph Layout Algorithm for Handy Network Visualization Designed for the Gephi Software’. PLOS ONE 9, no. 6 (2014), https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0098679

3. Instrument- or software-specific information needed to interpret the data: 
Gephi 0.9.2 (https://gephi.org/)

3.1. Figure 1 specifications:
3.1.1. Import settings:
Source files: Figure1_nodes.csv (nodes); Figure1_edges.csv (edges)
Graph type: Directed
Edges merge strategy: Sum
3.1.2. Overview settings:
Statistics: Average Degree (1.125)
Layout: Fruchterman Reingold
Area: 1000.0
Gravity: 10.0
Speed: 1.0
Node colour: Partition; 'ottobeuren'; false = FFFFFF (255,255,255), true = FF6666 (255,102,102))
Node size: Unique; size 14
Edge colour: Unique; 000000 (0,0,0)

3.2. Figure 2 specifications
3.2.1. Import settings:
Source files: Figure2_nodes.csv (nodes); Figure2_edges.csv (edges)
Graph type: Directed
Edges merge strategy: Don't merge
3.2.2. Overview settings:
Statistics: Average Degree (1.862); Average Weighted Degree (1.69)
Layout: ForceAtlas 2
Threads number: 3
Tolerance (speed): 1.0
Approximate repulsion: false
Approximation: 1.2
Scaling: 25.0
Stronger gravity: false
Gravity: 1.0
Dissuade hubs: false
LinLog mode: false
Prevent overlap: true
Edge weight influence: 1.0
Node colour: Partition; 'ottobeuren'; true = FF6666 (255,102,102), false = FFFFFF (255,255,255)
Node size: Ranking; 'Weighted Degree'; min size = 2, max size = 10
Edge colour: Partition; 'preserved'; true = 000000 (0,0,0), false = 999999 (153,153,153)

4. Quality-assurance procedures performed on the data: 
The evidence for connections was checked multiple times, and is documented in the related article (see appendices 1–2). Each time new connections were discovered and entered, the degree/weighted degree was recalculated to reflect this new information, and the graph adjusted accordingly.

DATA-SPECIFIC INFORMATION

DATA-SPECIFIC INFORMATION FOR Figure1_nodes.csv

1. Number of variables: 7

2. Number of cases/rows: 16

3. Variable list:
Id (integer): unique id assigned to node
Label (string): abbreviated label of node
Name (string): long name of figure represented by node
Ottobeuren (boolean): defines whether the node represents Ottobeuren Abbey (used for visualization purposes)
Indegree (integer): sum of all inbound connections
Outdegree (integer): sum of all outbound connections
Degree (integer): sum of all in- and outbound connections

DATA-SPECIFIC INFORMATION FOR Figure1_edges.csv

1. Number of variables: 8

2. Number of cases/rows: 18

3. Variable list:
Source (integer): id of source node (corresponds to column 'Id' in Figure1_nodes.csv)
Target (integer): id of target node (corresponds to column 'Id' in Figure1_nodes.csv)
Type (string): defines edge as directed or undirected
Id (integer): unique id assigned to edge
Label (string): label assigned to edge (corresponds to numbering found in appendix 1 in article)
Source label (string): abbreviated label of source node (corresponds to column 'Label' in Figure1_nodes.csv)
Target label (string): abbreviated label of target node (corresponds to column 'Label' in Figure1_nodes.csv)

DATA-SPECIFIC INFORMATION FOR Figure2_nodes.csv

1. Number of variables: 10

2. Number of cases/rows: 29

3. Variable list: 
Id (integer): unique id assigned to node
Label (string): abbreviated label of node
Name (string): long name of figure represented by node
Ottobeuren (boolean): defines whether the node is found in the Ottobeuren collection (used for visualization  purposes)
Indegree (integer): sum of all inbound connections
Outdegree (integer): sum of all outbound connections
Degree (integer): sum of all in- and outbound connections
Weighted indegree (decimal): sum of all inbound connections, adjusted for weight (column 'Weight' in Figure2_edges.csv)
Weighted outdegree (decimal): sum of all outbound connections, adjusted for weight (column 'Weight' in Figure2_edges.csv)
Weighted degree (decimal): sum of all in- and outbound connections, adjusted for weight (column 'Weight' in Figure2_edges.csv)

DATA-SPECIFIC INFORMATION FOR Figure2_edges.csv

1. Number of variables: 8

2. Number of cases/rows: 54

3. Variable list:
Source (integer): id of source node (corresponds to column 'Id' in Figure2_nodes.csv)
Target (integer): id of target node (corresponds to column 'Id' in Figure2_nodes.csv)
Type (string): defines edge as directed or undirected
Id (integer): unique id assigned to edge
Weight (decimal): defines whether connection based on evidence given by sender or recipient (1.0) or Third-party evidence (0.5) (see appendix 2 in article)
Source label (string): abbreviated label of source node (corresponds to column 'Label' in Figure2_nodes.csv)
Target label (string): abbreviated label of target node (corresponds to column 'Label' in Figure2_nodes.csv) (*)
Preserved (boolean): defines whether connection survives as preserved letter (true) or not (false) (see appendix 2 in article)

(*) CORRECTION: Due to a typographical error the labels 'MGF' (connection #42) and 'PGD' (connection #43) should be read as 'MFG' and 'PDG' respectively