Communication in the Chaco World: A Consideration of Time and Labor Mobilization
Departmental News
Posted: Jul 18, 2022 - 12:00pm
Dr. Wirt Wills and PhD Candidates Paulina F. Przystupa and Katharine Williams have published article in an upcoming American Antiquity issue and available via FirstView. Their article entitled Communication in the Chaco World: A Consideration of Time and Labor Mobilization provides an insightful analysis of 'downtown' Chaco great house community labor coordination.
Abstract
The construction of great houses during the Bonito Phase (ca. AD 850–1200) in Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, required massive amounts of building material and efficient mobilization and coordination of large labor pools. We employ least cost path analysis (LCA) to explore the potential communication network among great house communities in the Chaco “core” area and its relevance in managing sustained labor for constructing great houses. The results suggest that that the primary sources of labor for communal building projects were agricultural communities located within one to three hours of the largest buildings in the canyon.
