Recent archaeological efforts to explain the emergence and persistence of social inequality have been hampered by little information about how wealth was transmitted across generations, and how it may have accumulated or diminished over time. Building on studies that have shown domestic architecture to be an excellent material expression of household wealth, we provide a method for reconstructing the amount of labor invested in house construction among the Hohokam of southern Arizona. We also account for different architectural styles from different time periods. To illustrate the utility of the method for addressing broader social issues, we investigate the relationship among population increases, resource shortages, and wealth differentials at Pueblo Grande—one of the preeminent settlements in the Hohokam region. Inequality at Pueblo Grande was tracked over time and compared to similar results at the Grewe site. High-status households at both sites were distinguished architecturally by larger and, in some instances, more elaborate houses. The proximity of these households to public areas for ceremonial expression further suggests that access to ritual played a key role in creating and maintaining inequality in Hohokam society.

很少有关于财富如何世代相传以及财富如何随着时间积累或减少的信息，阻碍了最近用于解释社会不平等现象的出现和持续的考古学努力。在研究表明家庭建筑可以很好地表达家庭财富的基础上，我们提供了一种方法，可以重建亚利桑那州南部霍霍卡姆市房屋建设中投入的劳动力数量。我们还考虑了不同时期的不同建筑风格。为了说明该方法用于解决更广泛的社会问题的实用性，我们研究了霍霍坎姆地区最著名的定居点之一的普埃布洛格兰德人口增长，资源短缺和贫富差距之间的关系。随着时间的流逝，对普韦布洛（Pueblo Grande）的不平等现象进行了追踪，并将其与格雷威（Grewe）场所的类似结果进行了比较。这两个地点的地位高的家庭在建筑上都以较大的房屋（在某些情况下更精致的房屋）来区分。这些家庭靠近公共场所进行仪式表达进一步表明，获得礼仪在Hohokam社会中造成和维持不平等方面起着关键作用。