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Communication in the Chaco World: A Consideration of Time and Labor Mobilization
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 May 2022
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.
La construcción de las Casas Grandes durante el Fase Bonito (hacia 850-1200 dC) en Cañón Chaco, Nuevo México, requirió inmensas cantidades de materiales de construcción, la eficacia de movilización, y la coordinación de las grandes fuerzas laborales. Utilizamos Análisis de Camino de Menor Coste o “Least Cost Path Analysis” (LCPA) para examinar la potencial comunicación entre las comunidades de las Casas Grandes en el “central” área de Chaco. Los resultados sugieren que las fuentes primarias del trabajo fueron las comunidades agrícolas que se encontraron a una a tres horas de las construcciones más grandes del cañón.
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- Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Society for American Archaeology
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