Dynastic accumulation of wealth

Why do some dynasties maintain the fortune of their founders while others completely squander it in few generations? To address this question, we propose a simple deterministic model combining bequests motives and labor supply. We show that the interaction of the two key parameters in the model, the “hunger for accumulation” and the “willingness to exert effort”, can produce a surprisingly rich set of long-run process of wealth accumulation within a family lineage.