Figure 16 Sept 2026From “What is data provenance? The context behind a number”

The synthetic provenance register

A documented result keeps the source object, activity, responsible agent, relation, timing, and downstream use visible together.

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Figure 1The synthetic provenance register

ID	Entity	Activity	Agent	Relation and time	Downstream use
P-01	Source PDF S-17, retrieved 2026-08-31	Extract table 4	Research analyst	Used at retrieval time	Claim ledger
P-02	Extract E-17, version 1	Normalize units	Analysis notebook N-4	Derived from S-17	Working dataset
P-03	Account snapshot A-31	Join to E-17 by account ID	Scheduled pipeline	Associated at 2026-09-01 06:00	Cohort table
P-04	Cohort table C-2	Exclude duplicate IDs	Data steward	Activity recorded; reason retained	Review worksheet
P-05	Review worksheet W-9	Approve evidence sentence	Editor and source owner	Attributed to W-9 on 2026-09-02	Draft article
P-06	Draft article D-1	Publish or hold	Editorial process	Hold if source or relation is unresolved	Release decision

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Source: Author's synthetic provenance register grounded in World Wide Web Consortium (2013) PROV-DM. The vocabulary is source-bounded; all entities, activities, agents, dates, and dispositions are illustrative.

PNG4:3, 1600 × 1200, with the title, the source line and the attribution set in the image isoglu-2026-what-is-data-provenance-fig02.png

Source and evidence

Each line names a claim related to this exhibit, its source, and how it was checked.

A W3C13-C1 "Provenance is information about entities, activities, and people involved in producing a piece of data or thing", used to assess its quality, reliability or trustworthinessW3C. (2013). PROV-DM The PROV Data Model captured 2026-09-06
A W3C13-C3 The model is organised in six components, among them "derivations of entities from entities", alongside generation, usage, association and attributionW3C. (2013). PROV-DM The PROV Data Model captured 2026-09-06
A W3C13-C4 "a derivation is a transformation of an entity into another, an update of an entity resulting in a new one, or the construction of a new entity" based on a pre-existing oneW3C. (2013). PROV-DM The PROV Data Model captured 2026-09-06
A W3C13-C5 Provenance is input to a judgement, not a warrant: information "which can be used to form assessments about its quality, reliability or trustworthiness". It certifies nothingW3C. (2013). PROV-DM The PROV Data Model captured 2026-09-06
B R02-OWN-C1 Data provenance records the entities, activities, agents, relations, and timing involved in producing, influencing, or delivering a data objectAuthor framework grounded in W3C13-C1, W3C13-C3, and W3C13-C4
B R02-OWN-C4 A provenance register should preserve entity identity and version, activity, agent, relation, clock, downstream use, and exception stateAuthor operating framework
B R02-OWN-C5 A versioned source, recorded transformation, named agent, and downstream use allow an analyst to replay the context of a resultAuthor framework
B R02-OWN-C6 Unversioned substitution, relation loss, agent collapse, clock confusion, and unrecorded exclusion are provenance failure modesAuthor diagnostic framework

Grades: A, verified against the printed page of the primary source · B, primary source, text layer only · C, authoritative secondary · D, reported.

From the essay

From the research bench

What is data provenance? The context behind a number

Data provenance records the entities, activities, and agents behind a result. A source path makes a claim reviewable and reproducible.

6 Sept 2026

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This exhibit belongs to an essay: the numbers live here, the argument lives there.

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APA 7

Isoglu, S. (2026). The synthetic provenance register [Figure]. isoglu.com. https://isoglu.com/insights/exhibits/isoglu-2026-what-is-data-provenance-fig02/

BibTeX

@misc{isoglu-2026-what-is-data-provenance-fig02,
  author = {Isoglu, Sinan},
  title = {{The synthetic provenance register}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Figure 1, isoglu.com},
  url = {https://isoglu.com/insights/exhibits/isoglu-2026-what-is-data-provenance-fig02/},
  note = {From the essay {What is data provenance? The context behind a number}}
}

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<figure>
  <a href="https://isoglu.com/insights/exhibits/isoglu-2026-what-is-data-provenance-fig02/">
    <img src="https://isoglu.com/social/isoglu-2026-what-is-data-provenance-fig02.png" alt="Figure 1: The synthetic provenance register" width="3200" height="2400">
  </a>
  <figcaption>Figure 1: The synthetic provenance register. Source: Author&#39;s synthetic provenance register grounded in World Wide Web Consortium (2013) PROV-DM. The vocabulary is source-bounded; all entities, activities, agents, dates, and dispositions are illustrative. <a href="https://isoglu.com/insights/exhibits/isoglu-2026-what-is-data-provenance-fig02/">View exhibit</a>.</figcaption>
</figure>