--- /dev/null
+/*******************************************************************************
+ * Copyright (c) 2010, 2014 Sonatype, Inc.
+ * All rights reserved. This program and the accompanying materials
+ * are made available under the terms of the Eclipse Public License v1.0
+ * which accompanies this distribution, and is available at
+ * http://www.eclipse.org/legal/epl-v10.html
+ *
+ * Contributors:
+ * Sonatype, Inc. - initial API and implementation
+ *******************************************************************************/
+package org.eclipse.aether.artifact;
+
+import java.util.Map;
+
+/**
+ * An artifact type describing artifact characteristics/properties that are common for certain artifacts. Artifact types
+ * are a means to simplify the description of an artifact by referring to an artifact type instead of specifying the
+ * various properties individually.
+ *
+ * @noimplement This interface is not intended to be implemented by clients.
+ * @noextend This interface is not intended to be extended by clients.
+ * @see ArtifactTypeRegistry
+ * @see DefaultArtifact#DefaultArtifact(String, String, String, String, String, ArtifactType)
+ */
+public interface ArtifactType
+{
+
+ /**
+ * Gets the identifier of this type, e.g. "maven-plugin" or "test-jar".
+ *
+ * @return The identifier of this type, never {@code null}.
+ * @see ArtifactProperties#TYPE
+ */
+ String getId();
+
+ /**
+ * Gets the file extension to use for artifacts of this type (unless explicitly overridden by the artifact).
+ *
+ * @return The usual file extension, never {@code null}.
+ */
+ String getExtension();
+
+ /**
+ * Gets the classifier to use for artifacts of this type (unless explicitly overridden by the artifact).
+ *
+ * @return The usual classifier or an empty string if none, never {@code null}.
+ */
+ String getClassifier();
+
+ /**
+ * Gets the properties to use for artifacts of this type (unless explicitly overridden by the artifact).
+ *
+ * @return The (read-only) properties, never {@code null}.
+ * @see ArtifactProperties
+ */
+ Map<String, String> getProperties();
+
+}