Material Prerequisites and the Transition to Compact Urbanism: An Investigation of Four Regional Centres

Abstract

This thesis is an investigation into the material prerequisite adaptations required for a transition to compact urban sedentism to occur, as outlined in Roland Fletcher’s foundational theory: The Interaction-Communication Limit Model. The model proposes that there are distinct limits that restrict the population density and the areal extent of a settlement. These limits are defined by the finite capacity for humans to process and respond to signals. These signals emanate from the settlement environment, its layout, form, features and the inhabitants of the settlement themselves. The growth of a settlement exponentially increases the stress an individual experiences as the density of the site increases. A community in a dense and compact settlement cannot grow to exceed this limit and expect to remain sustainable. Thus, the material environment must be adapted to produce more predictable social contexts; a means with which to control the signal load of a dense urban community. The adaptations must emerge prior to the settlement reaching its I-C limit to maintain sustainable growth. This study focusses on the period between the 1Ha and 100Ha transition, according to Fletcher’s model, from early sedentary villages to city-states in Southwest Asia, China, Mesoamerica, and Peru. These four centres of sedentary transitions were chosen of the six generally accepted compact urban centres to generate a geographically far-reaching dataset within the time limitations of a master’s degree: with the illustrations and definitions of Fletcher’s work as a standard for identification and cataloguing of material prerequisites. In practice, this study sought to categorise and identify the accumulation of instances of prerequisite adaptations in the material record of each region over time, in order to assess whether the emergence of these prerequisites is random, or the result of a process. These material prerequisites have been organised into three umbrella categories. Using these categories, this study graphically maps the accumulation of material prerequisites over time to test the I-C model as well as discuss the implications of such an accumulation. Ultimately, the interregional nature of this study can also allow for comparison of the material record to identify global patterns in trajectories of settlement growth.