Building Typologies

A Bayesian Methodology for the Analysis of Precontact Architecture

Collaborators: Jean Pike AIA; Deborah Leishman PhD

Our collaborative practice operates at the intersection of architecture, archaeology and Bayesian statistics to formulate a new methodology for the analysis of pre-contact architecture. Our methodology expands the quantity and the scope of indicators previously considered in order to provide deeper insight into possible ideational, functional, cultural and social affinities and the complex relationship between materiality and social relations. Utilizing Bayesian network analysis, our method seeks to track the movement of architectural ideologies and methods through the analysis of similar formal building types at discrete locations. Our initial analysis selects two sites, McPhee Pueblo, Delores, Colorado (AD 850-910)—often cited in the literature as a precedent for Pueblo Bonito—and the large Hohokam ballcourt at Snaketown, Arizona (AD 700-1000) and asks: which is most similar to Pueblo Bonito c. AD 920?It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.